Infant Crying Patterns: What Research Tells Us About the First Three Months

By Birth & Baby University · Last updated: October 2026 · 8 min read

Few things test new parents like a crying baby, and few topics matter more to a postpartum doula. Families want to know how much crying is normal, whether it peaks at a certain week and when to worry. They are also at their most tired and least patient when the crying is loudest. The research here is better than most people expect, and it has challenged one popular belief: that every baby’s crying peaks at about six weeks. This article summarizes what a large meta-analysis, AAP guidance and prevention-program studies show, notes where they conflict, and describes the doula’s supportive role.

Key takeaways

Quick answer: most babies cry and fuss for roughly two hours a day in the first six weeks, and the total tends to fall by two to three months. Crying that is paired with illness signs, such as fever, a bulging soft spot, vomiting or crying when touched, needs a clinician. Caregiver exhaustion is itself a risk, and a doula can help families have a plan for taking a break.

• A meta-analysis of 28 diary studies with 8,690 infants found mean fuss and cry time stable at 117 to 133 minutes per day in the first six weeks, falling to 68 minutes by 10 to 12 weeks. It found no statistical evidence for a universal peak at six weeks across studies.
• The AAP says newborns routinely cry 1 to 4 hours a day, that crying often has no apparent cause, and that responding promptly in the first months will not spoil a baby.
• The AAP symptom guide lists reasons to call a doctor or seek care now: fever in a baby under 12 weeks, a bulging soft spot, vomiting, crying when touched or moved, or nonstop crying lasting more than 2 hours that cannot be consoled.
• Evidence that crying-education programs reduce abusive head trauma is mixed: a British Columbia study reported a 35% reduction in hospital admissions that was borderline for infants under 12 months, while a North Carolina study found fewer nurse-line crying calls but no reduction in abusive head trauma rates.

What the research says

How much crying, and when. Wolke, Bilgin and Samara’s systematic review and meta-analysis (2017) in The Journal of Pediatrics pooled 28 diary studies (33 samples, 8,690 infants) covering the first 3 months. The mean total fuss and cry duration was stable at 117 to 133 minutes in the first 6 weeks and dropped to a mean of 68 minutes by 10 to 12 weeks. The authors found no statistical evidence of a universal crying peak at 6 weeks across studies, which is at odds with the often-repeated claim that crying peaks at about 6 weeks. Colic by modified Wessel criteria was much more frequent in the first 6 weeks (17% to 25%) than at 8 to 9 weeks (11%) and 10 to 12 weeks (0.6%), and was lowest in Denmark and Japan. The authors suggest that excessive crying may be better identified as fuss and cry above the 90th percentile of the review’s charts. The AAP’s parent guidance is broadly consistent with the numbers: its page on responding to your baby’s cries (last updated February 2025) says all babies cry, often without any apparent cause, and newborns routinely cry 1 to 4 hours a day. Diary studies rely on parent reports, and the pooled samples vary in method and setting, so individual babies will differ.

What crying means and what helps. The AAP page says crying serves useful purposes: it calls for help, shuts out overwhelming sensations and releases tension. It advises meeting the most pressing need first, then trying consoling techniques such as rocking, stroking, safe swaddling, singing, soft music, walking, rhythmic noise and vibration, burping and a warm bath. It says responding promptly in the first months will not spoil a young baby and that if parents answer their baby’s calls for help, the baby will cry less overall. It also says some babies cannot fall asleep without crying and, if the baby seems well and is warm, dry and fed, leaving them alone briefly in a safe place such as a crib can be reasonable. It reports that research has never shown “gas drops” (simethicone) or gripe water to work, and that rectal temperature of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) or higher in an inconsolable baby could mean infection and warrants contacting the pediatrician. The AAP’s symptom guide for crying in babies before 3 months (Schmitt Pediatric Guidelines) lists hunger as the most common reason, followed by sleepiness, overfeeding, caffeine in a breastfeeding parent’s diet, clothing that is too hot, cold or tight, and a BM diaper. It defines colic as a lot of crying once or twice a day in a baby who is consolable, otherwise acts normal, is not sick and is eating enough, with onset usually before 2 weeks and resolution usually by 3 months (sometimes up to 4). It tells parents to go to the ER if the baby is not alert when awake, and to call a doctor or seek care now for a baby under 1 month who looks or acts abnormal, fever in a baby under 12 weeks, a bulging or swollen soft spot, a swollen scrotum or groin, vomiting, crying when touched or held, or nonstop crying lasting more than 2 hours that cannot be consoled. For colic specifically, see Colic and Excessive Crying: What Research Says About Causes and Interventions.

When crying is dangerous for the baby. The AAP page and the symptom guide both warn that shaking a baby can cause blindness, brain damage or death, and tell caregivers to put the baby down in a safe place and get help when frustrated. The best-known education program is the Period of PURPLE Crying. In North Carolina, Zolotor and colleagues (2015) reported that, among 405,060 newborns whose parents received the program, calls to a nurse advice line about crying fell by 20% for children under 3 months, but the study found no reduction in abusive head trauma rates relative to other states, and the authors called for further evaluation. In British Columbia, Barr and colleagues (2018) followed 354,477 newborns over eight years. Abusive head trauma admissions fell from 10.6 to 7.1 per 100,000 person-years in infants under 12 months (relative risk 0.67, 95% confidence interval 0.42 to 1.07, not statistically significant) and from 6.7 to 4.4 for children under 24 months (relative risk 0.65, 0.43 to 0.99). The authors describe this as a 35% reduction and encouraging, though the design was not a randomized trial and the rates are low. The two studies point in different directions on the hardest outcome, so no one should promise parents that a program prevents harm.

What this means for doulas

• Normalize without dismissing. “Many babies cry about two hours a day in the first weeks, and it tends to fall by around 2 to 3 months” is a fair summary of the review. Avoid presenting a six-week peak as a law of nature.
• Hold the line on illness signs. Fever (rectal 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or higher) in a young baby, a bulging soft spot, vomiting, crying when touched, a baby who is not alert, or inconsolable crying for more than 2 hours should prompt contact with the pediatric provider.
• Teach a plan for parents. Talk before the hard night: who can take over, where the baby can be put down safely, and what to do if anger or panic rises. The AAP says to put the baby down and take a break, and to share the information with every caregiver.
• Support, don’t push, soothing tools. Offer the AAP’s list of options and let parents choose. Be honest that gas drops and gripe water have not been shown to work.
• Watch for caregiver distress. A parent who is worn out may need a break, rest or a call to their own clinician. Postpartum mood concerns are outside a doula’s scope to diagnose but within it to notice and refer.

Putting the evidence into practice

1. Ask about the crying pattern. When does it happen, what helps, how long does it last, and does the baby seem well in between.
2. Offer relief shifts. A doula can hold the baby while the parent showers or sleeps, which uses a doula’s strengths without moving into clinical territory.
3. Review safe handling. Remind every caregiver, including partners and relatives, never to shake a baby, and to set a crying baby down safely and step away to calm down.
4. Know the same-day triggers. Use the AAP symptom guide’s list as a script for when to call.
5. Keep sleep safety in view. A crying, exhausted household is at risk for unsafe sleep. See Supporting Exhausted Parents While Maintaining Evidence-Based Safe Sleep Practices.

Limits and uncertainty

The meta-analysis combines parent-kept diaries with varying definitions, mostly from high-income countries, and its authors themselves flag differences between countries. The AAP pages are consumer guidance, and one is a third-party triage protocol. The abusive head trauma studies are observational and report small absolute numbers, so results can be unstable, and the two studies cited disagree on the main outcome. This article draws on the abstracts of the research papers and the full text of the AAP pages, not the full papers. This article does not discuss individual medical causes of crying, such as reflux or allergy, which are covered elsewhere and require clinician assessment. Parents who are afraid they might hurt their baby need immediate help from their clinician or emergency services.

The bottom line

Babies cry a lot, and in the first six weeks the average is about two hours a day, though not every baby follows a six-week peak. The practical question for a family is whether the baby is otherwise well, whether any warning signs are present, and whether the caregivers have a plan for hard moments. A doula helps by normalizing, soothing alongside parents, watching for illness signs and caregiver strain, and sending families to the pediatric provider early.

Birth & Baby University’s For Doulas page lays out its postpartum doula training, recertification and mentorship for doulas who support families through the newborn weeks. Confirm that any program meets your certifier’s, employer’s or state’s requirements before you enroll.

This article is for professional education. It is not medical, legal or tax advice. Check the standards of your certifying organization and the rules where you work. For concerns about a baby’s health, contact a pediatric provider or emergency services.

Sources and further reading

• Wolke D, Bilgin A, Samara M. Systematic review and meta-analysis: fussing and crying durations and prevalence of colic in infants. The Journal of Pediatrics (2017). Read the source
• American Academy of Pediatrics. Responding to Your Baby’s Cries (HealthyChildren.org, last updated February 2025). Read the source
• American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org symptom checker; Schmitt Pediatric Guidelines). Crying Baby, Before 3 Months Old. Read the source
• Zolotor AJ, et al. Effectiveness of a statewide abusive head trauma prevention program in North Carolina. JAMA Pediatrics (2015). Read the source
• Barr RG, et al. Eight-year outcome of implementation of abusive head trauma prevention. Child Abuse & Neglect (2018). Read the source

More for professionals: the Professionals Blog.