Association of maternal sleep before and during pregnancy with preterm birth and early infant sleep and temperament

Abstract

Abstract This study aimed to investigate the association of maternal sleep before and during pregnancy with preterm birth, infant sleep and temperament at 1 month of age. We used the data of the Japan Environment and Children’s Study, a cohort study in Japan, which registered 103,099 pregnancies between 2011 and 2014. Participants were asked about their sleep before and during pregnancy, and the sleep and temperament of their newborns at 1 month of age. Preterm birth data were collected from medical records. Maternal sleep was not associated with preterm birth, but subjective sleep quality during pregnancy was associated with late preterm birth (birth at 34–36 weeks of gestation). For example, participants with extremely light subjective depth of sleep were more likely to experience preterm birth (RR = 1.19; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.04–1.35). Maternal sleep both before and during pregnancy seemed to be associated with infant sleep and temperament at 1 month of age. Infants, whose mothers slept for less than 6 hours before pregnancy, tended to cry intensely (RR = 1.15; 95% CI = 1.09–1.20). Maternal sleep problems before and during pregnancy were associated with preterm birth and child sleep problems and temperament.