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Maternal sleep and arousals during bedsharing with infants
S Mosko1, C Richard, J McKenna
1Department of Neurology, University of California Irvine Medical Center, Orange 92868, USA.
Sleep
|February 1, 1997
Summary
Parent-infant bedsharing modestly impacts maternal sleep, slightly reducing deep sleep but not total sleep time. These changes appear adaptive for infant monitoring and do not diminish with routine bedsharing.
Area of Science:
- Sleep Medicine
- Developmental Psychology
- Sociology
Background:
- Parent-infant bedsharing is common, yet misconceptions suggest it degrades adult sleep quality.
- Previous research on adult sleep and bedsharing focused on co-sleeping with another adult, not an infant.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of bedsharing on maternal sleep quality in breastfeeding mother-infant pairs.
- To compare sleep patterns of mothers who routinely bedshare versus those who sleep solitarily.
Main Methods:
- Laboratory polysomnography was used to monitor sleep in 20 bedsharing and 15 solitary-sleeping mother-infant pairs.
- Infants were 11-15 weeks old; mothers' sleep was compared during bedsharing and solitary nights.
Main Results:
- Maternal total sleep time remained unchanged during bedsharing.
- There were modest reductions in Stage 3-4 sleep and increases in Stage 1-2 sleep, with shorter sleep stage episodes.
- Arousal frequency increased, but nocturnal wakefulness did not, due to shorter awakenings.
Conclusions:
- Bedsharing with an infant has a modest impact on maternal sleep, differing from co-sleeping with another adult.
- These sleep alterations may be adaptive, enhancing maternal infant monitoring capabilities.
- The effects of bedsharing on maternal sleep did not habituate in mothers who routinely practiced it.