Maternal perception related to the regulation of the sleep wake pattern of infants in Japan
There is an increased need for active intervention to regulate the sleep-wake cycle from early infancy since sleep disturbances have been increasing among children in Japan. The objective of this study is to identify maternal perceptions related to the regulation of sleep-wake cycle for infants.
METHODS:
The subjects were the mothers of healthy children aged between 0 to 4 years old. Data was collected using self-reported anonymous questionnaire, which asked 17 items about regulating sleep-wake cycle, such as arranging regular dairy rhythms and handling the infants during night time. The mother's perception about the degree of importance and implementation were rated on 0-3 scale for each item. Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS Ver. 18.0 for Windows. This research was approved by the ethics committee of Hokkaido University.
RESULTS:
Subjects were 163 mothers with mean age of 34.4 years old. 39.9% of them were raising the first child. Regulating dairy rhythms of all family members was thought to be the most important for the establishment of infant's sleep-wake cycle (mean±SD: 2.72±0.45). Arrangement in light environment along with a 24-hour period was thought to be less important(mean±SD: 1.85±0.55). Bed sharing was thought to be important (mean±SD: 2.42±0.59) and implemented (mean±SD: 2.57±0.53). The χ2-test did not show significant difference by maternal background, such as age, the number of children.
CONCLUSIONS:
Giving the information about arranging the adequate light environment could be an effective support to create sleep-wake cycle of infants. Behavioral interventions which are adopted in Western countries are not always possible to introduce because of the unique daily habit including the sleep arrangement in Japan. Based on these results, the adequate approach for regulating sleep-wake cycle for infant is necessary and should be developed in Japan.