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Updated: Sep 25, 2025
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Human Circadian Phenotyping and Diurnal Performance Testing in the Real World
Published on: April 7, 2020
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Sleep behavior and chronotype before and throughout pregnancy.
Peinan Zhao1, Bronwyn S Bedrick1, Kristine E Brown1
1Washington University, St. Louis, USA.
Sleep Medicine
|April 30, 2022
Summary
Pregnancy alters sleep patterns, with earlier sleep onset and longer duration in the first trimester. Sleep quality declines in early and late pregnancy but improves mid-pregnancy.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive Health
- Sleep Medicine
- Chronobiology
Background:
- Sleep behavior changes significantly during pregnancy.
- Longitudinal data comparing sleep before and during pregnancy are scarce.
- Understanding these changes is crucial for maternal health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare sleep behavior, including timing, duration, and quality, before and throughout pregnancy.
- To establish normative sleep patterns during different trimesters of pregnancy.
- To identify potential sleep-related risk factors in healthy pregnancies.
Main Methods:
- Prospective cohort study of healthy women from pre-pregnancy to delivery.
- Validated questionnaires (e.g., Munich ChronoType Questionnaire, Epworth Sleepiness Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index) used at each trimester.
- Wrist actigraphy employed in a subset for objective sleep parameter measurement.
Main Results:
- Participants experienced less social jetlag during pregnancy compared to pre-pregnancy.
- Sleep period start times were earlier in the first and second trimesters, returning to baseline by the third.
- Actigraphy showed longer sleep duration on workdays across all trimesters and on free days in the first trimester.
Conclusions:
- The first trimester is marked by earlier sleep onset, longer sleep duration, and poorer sleep quality.
- Sleep quality improves in the second trimester, with sleep timing normalizing by the third trimester.
- These findings provide a baseline for identifying sleep-related risks in pregnancy.
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