Too Much Attention Keeps Babies Awake
Baby won’t sleep all night? The problem may be too much stimulation during the day - everything from taking kids to the mall to picking them up at the slightest whimper.
Many parents list poor sleeping as their biggest child-rearing headache, especially during the first year or two.
Dr. Sara Harkness of Pennsylvania State University studied Dutch and American families in search of answers.
She found that Dutch babies sleep longer and sleep through the night at an earlier age than American infants do.
The reason, she believes, is a Dutch penchant for regularity and restfulness, contrasting with the American belief that stimulation helps babies’ mental development.
Dutch parents tend to establish soothing routines for their babies all day, not just at night. Compared with American moms, they pick up their babies less often and talk to them less. They believe infants should learn to entertain themselves. They put them to bed at the same time every night.
“Perhaps having a regular and restful daytime routine is a key to the early development of a pattern of nighttime sleep that seems to fit the needs of both the child and the rest of the family,” said Harkness.
She presented the results of her study, conducted with Dr. Constance Keefer of Harvard Medical School, on Monday at a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
The fact that diverse cultures raise children differently long has fascinated researchers. Usually people in this field, called ethnopediatrics, compare extremely diverse societies.
Indeed, Harkness’ first research looked at differences in sleeping patterns between babies in Los Angeles and the rural Kipsigis community in Kenya. There she found that while American infants averaged almost eight hours of nighttime sleep by 16 weeks of age, the African babies continued to wake up every three or four hours until at least 8 months of age.
Next, Harkness compared two much more similar cultures - 36 families in Cambridge, Mass., and 66 in Bloemenheim in the Netherlands.
“To our surprise, we found that the differences between the American and Dutch children were as striking as between the American and Kipsigis infants,” she said.
At 6 months of age, the Cambridge babies slept just under 13 of every 24 hours, while the Dutch babies slept almost 15 hours. During the night, the Dutch babies slept one hour longer and slept in longer uninterrupted stretches.
Furthermore, the Dutch youngsters went to bed noticeably earlier. While conducting the study in Bloemenheim, Harkness said, her own 7-year-old son seemed to be the only child his age still up at 7:30 p.m.
Her work suggests the contrast stems from different philosophies - often laid down by influential pediatricians - about the best way to raise babies.
American parents often are told that lots of stimulation is needed for babies’ mental and social growth. “They want to create a loving, exciting and novelty-filled daytime environment for the child,” she said.
American parents’ work schedules also may play a role. For instance, harried mothers may cart their babies on errands more often or sit them in front of the TV set.
Dutch parents, instead, have followed “the three R’s” - “rust, regalmaat and reinheid” - which means rest, regularity and cleanliness.
Dr. Ronald Barr of McGill University in Montreal said comparisons between cultures cannot determine which way is best. Many different methods may turn out equally healthy children.
Instead, he said, “this gives us insights into what makes the human body click.”