Transactional Associations Between Bottle to Bed and Infant Sleep Problems Over the First Year

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Developmental Psychology
• Sleep Medicine

Background:

• Infant sleep problems are common and can impact family well-being.
• The practice of putting infants to bed with a bottle is prevalent but its long-term effects on sleep are not fully understood.
• Understanding the bidirectional relationship between feeding practices and infant sleep is crucial for developing effective interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the longitudinal associations between bottle-feeding at bedtime and maternal-reported infant sleep problems.
• To examine the transactional relationship between maternal feeding practices and infant sleep patterns over time.
• To identify potential pathways through which bottle-feeding at bedtime may influence infant sleep disturbances.

Main Methods:

• A 3-wave longitudinal study design was employed with 299 mother-infant dyads.
• Maternal feeding practices (bottle-to-bed) and infant sleep problems (sleep onset latency, time awake, night wakings, sleep duration) were assessed at infant ages 2, 6, and 14 months.
• A cross-lagged panel model was used to analyze the data, controlling for relevant covariates.

Main Results:

• Bottle-feeding at bedtime at 2 months predicted increased infant sleep onset latency, time awake at night, and frequency of night wakings at 6 months.
• Infant nighttime sleep duration and frequency of night wakings at 6 months predicted increased maternal use of bottle-to-bed at 14 months.
• A significant indirect pathway was found from bottle-to-bed at 2 months to bottle-to-bed at 14 months, mediated by infant night wakings at 6 months.

Conclusions:

• The findings support a transactional model where infant sleep problems can reinforce bedtime bottle-feeding practices.
• Early intervention strategies aimed at preventing bottle-feeding at bedtime may be beneficial for improving infant sleep.
• Addressing infant night wakings is important for potentially disrupting the cycle of bottle-feeding at bedtime.