The Relationship Between Maternal and Infant Sleep Duration Across the First Two Years.
Tianying Cai, Carolyn Sutter, Sharon M Donovan and 1 others
PMID 37276363WHAT IT FOUND
Most low-maternal-sleep families improved by 12 months.
Infants waking at night predicted continued low sleep for mothers. Earlier bedtimes and breastfeeding at 12 months were linked to better sleep. Sleep profiles stabilized after the first year.
Key findings
01Mothers in the low-sleep profile reported significantly less sleep than those in the average-sleep profile, falling below national guidelines.
0245% of families in the low maternal sleep group at 3 months transitioned to the average sleep group by 12 months, and profiles became stable after 12 months.
03Infant nighttime waking was the most consistent predictor of low maternal sleep, while earlier bedtime and breastfeeding at 12 months were associated with average maternal sleep.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
All sleep data relied on maternal reports rather than objective measures like actigraphy, which may introduce bias. The sample was predominantly White, college-educated, and married, limiting generalizability to families with lower socioeconomic status or different cultural backgrounds. The study observed associations and did not test whether interventions to change bedtime or feeding improve sleep.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that establishing earlier bedtimes or breastfeeding will definitively increase maternal sleep duration. These factors were associated with better sleep profiles in this observational study, but the direction of causality is not established.