An assessment of the sleeping pattern in healthy infants

Abstract

Background: Sleep plays a significant role in good physiological state and well-being throughout life. Sleep is necessary for children because it directly impacts mental and physical development. Objective: To assess the sleep pattern, sleep habits and parental reporting of sleep problems and to examine the factors affecting sleep in a group of healthy infants in Sri Lanka. Method: Two hundred and fifty parent / baby pairs participated in this descriptive cross-sectional study. Sample was divided into the following age categories: one month, three months, six months, nine months and twelve months. Data were collected from parents / caregivers at well-baby clinics in selected public health midwife (PHM) areas, using an interviewer-administered sleeping questionnaire and infants’ sleeping hours were recorded using a sleeping chart. Data were analysed using SPSS version 25. Results: Mean daytime, nighttime and total sleep duration of infants at 1 month of age was 6.09 hours, 8.47 hours and 14.26 hours respectively. The mean daytime, nighttime and the total sleep duration of the infants at 12 months of age was 2.57 hours, 8.33 hours and 10.87 hours respectively. About 12% of babies had total sleep durations not in agreement with the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) 2015 recommendations. Total sleep bouts tended to decrease with increasing age but 6 month old babies had higher sleep bouts than 3 month old babies. About 26.4% of infants were reported to have problematic sleep. There was no significant difference in total sleep time between female and male babies.