Does breastfeeding influence sleep? A longitudinal study across the first two postpartum years

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Health
• Sleep Medicine
• Maternal-Infant Health

Background:

• The relationship between breastfeeding and parental sleep is not well understood.
• This study focuses on nulliparous individuals during the first two years postpartum.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between breastfeeding and sleep duration/efficiency in new mothers.
• To analyze how feeding type and frequency affect maternal sleep patterns.

Main Methods:

• Longitudinal study with 155 nulliparous participants (average age 33.45).
• Data collected via telephone interviews and self-reports at 1.5, 3, 6, 12, and 24 months postpartum.
• Mixed-effects models used to analyze breastfeeding and sleep variables, controlling for covariates.

Main Results:

• Breastfeeding or human milk percentage did not significantly affect sleep duration or quality.
• Increased number of nighttime feeds strongly correlated with shorter sleep duration and lower sleep efficiency.
• Each additional nighttime feed reduced sleep by 6.6-8.4 minutes and efficiency by 2.88%-3.02%.

Conclusions:

• Breastfeeding itself is not linked to poor parental sleep; nighttime feeding frequency is the key factor.
• Sharing nighttime infant care responsibilities can mitigate sleep disturbances and improve maternal wellbeing.