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Maternal sleep and small for gestational age infants in the Japan Environment and Children's Study: a cohort study
Seiichi Morokuma1,2, Mototsugu Shimokawa3, Kiyoko Kato4,5
1Research Center for Environmental and Developmental Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan. morokuma@med.kyushu-u.ac.jp.
Insights
Maternal sleep duration and quality were not associated with the risk of having a small for gestational age (SGA) infant. This study found no link between how much or how well mothers slept and their baby's birth weight.
Area of Science:
- Obstetrics and Gynecology
- Perinatology
- Sleep Medicine
Background:
- Infants born small for gestational age (SGA) face increased risks of immediate complications, short-term morbidity, mortality, and long-term neurologic and metabolic issues.
- Reduced maternal sleep duration has been suggested as a risk factor for SGA birth, but evidence specifically evaluating maternal sleep quantity and quality is limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between maternal sleep amount and quality and the risk of delivering a small for gestational age (SGA) infant.
Main Methods:
- A cohort study involving 8,631 participants from the Japan Environment and Children's Study.
- Data collected included maternal sleep status (duration, quality indicator) and potential confounding factors.
- Log-binomial regression models were used to estimate the risk of SGA birth, with results presented as risk ratios and 95% confidence intervals.
Main Results:
- No statistically significant association was found between maternal sleep duration and the risk of SGA birth.
- No significant association was observed between maternal sleep quality (tiredness upon waking) and the risk of SGA birth.
- Neither the amount nor the quality of maternal sleep demonstrated a link to the risk of having an SGA infant.
Conclusions:
- The findings suggest that maternal sleep duration and quality, as measured in this study, are not significant risk factors for delivering a small for gestational age infant.
- Further research may be needed to explore other potential maternal sleep-related factors or different methodologies to understand their impact on fetal growth.
Objectives:
Small for gestational age infants have an increased risk of immediate complications, short-term morbidity and mortality, and long-term neurologic and metabolic disorders in adulthood. Previous research has shown that reduced sleep duration is a risk factor for SGA birth. However, only a few studies have evaluated maternal sleep as a risk factor for SGA birth. In the present study, we investigated the relationship between the amount and quality of mothers' sleep and infants' birth weight.
Results:
This cohort study (n = 8631) used data from the Japan Environment and Children's Study, an ongoing cohort study that began in January 2011. Data on sleep status (sleep duration and one indicator of sleep quality) and potential confounding factors were recorded. A log-binomial regression model was used to estimate the risk of small for gestational age birth, and the results were expressed as risk ratios and their respective 95% confidence interval. No significant results were observed for sleep duration or tiredness upon waking. Neither the amount nor the quality of mothers' sleep was associated with the risk of small for gestational age birth.