Sleep Parenting Across Cultures

Last week a Salon article addressed the controversial topic of sleep parenting. Ada Calhoun shared how she and her husband grappled with conflicting advice about what was best for their newborn.

“Cry it out” sleep training. Attachment parenting. Baby management. New parents can become overwhelmed by all of the advice offered by parenting books.

Now Calhoun is joining the debate with her own book. Instinctive Parenting advises parents to “find what works for you and your family and ditch the anxiety and judgment.”



But sleep parenting can vary widely across cultures. A recent study compared countries that are mostly Caucasian with those that are primarily Asian.

The study involved parents of 29,287 infants and toddlers. Seventeen countries were represented. Parents completed a questionnaire on the Internet.

Results published in March show that young children in Asian countries went to bed later and slept less. Bed sharing and room sharing also were more common in their homes.

Bedtimes ranged from 7:27 p.m. in New Zealand to 10:17 p.m. in Hong Kong. Total sleep time ranged from 11.6 hours in Japan to 13.3 hours in New Zealand.

In New Zealand only 5.8 percent of parents reported sharing a bed with their infant or toddler. In contrast bed sharing was reported by 83.2 percent of parents in Vietnam.

The initial results of the study were presented at SLEEP 2008. Another report based on the research will be published in April.

It shows that 57 percent of parents in Caucasian countries reported that their child falls asleep independently in his or her own crib or bed. This was reported by just four percent of parents in primarily Asian regions.

In 2006 the AASM published practice parameters for bedtime problems and night wakings in young children and infants. A task force of experts reviewed all of the current research on this topic.

The report recommends sleep training to help infants and toddlers learn to fall asleep on their own. You can read a summary of the report on SleepEducation.com.

Discuss any ongoing sleep problems with your child’s doctor. He or she may refer you to an AASM-accredited sleep center for help.

Read more about sleep and children.

Sleepless in Brazil

A new study shows that Americans aren’t the only people who have sleep problems. The study surveyed Brazilian adults about their sleep complaints. The results were published last week in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

The study involved a random sample of 2,110 adults from 150 cities in Brazil. Surveys were conducted during face-to-face interviews.

Results show that 63 percent of people had at least one sleep complaint. Sleep problems significantly increased with age. Insomnia and nightmares were more common in women; snoring was more common in men.

Insomnia was the most common complaint overall; it was reported by 33 percent of people. Twenty-nine percent of people reported having a problem with snoring.

Nightmares were reported by 22 percent of people. Twelve percent reported having a problem with “kicking legs.” This could be a sign of either restless legs syndrome or periodic limb movements.

Six percent of people complained of “breathing pauses” during sleep. This is a sign of obstructive sleep apnea.

The authors estimate that more than 79 million people in Brazil have sleep disorder complaints.

Image by Kaysha

Sleep Around the World: What about Children?

As the Sleep Education Blog reported, the OECD recently compared the sleep times of people in 18 countries. It found that people in Korea and Japan get the least sleep; people in the U.S. have the second-highest daily sleep time. The U.S. time use survey involved people who were 15 years of age and older.

But what about children? Are there differences around the world in how long children normally sleep?

A study abstract presented last June at SLEEP 2008 provided some insights. It focused on 17 countries that were primarily Asian or Caucasian.

The study involved parents of more than 21,000 infants and toddlers; the age range of the children was from newborn to three years of age. The parents completed a questionnaire about their child’s sleep.

The study found a pattern that is similar to the OECD report. Results suggest that young children in Asian countries get less sleep each day than young children in Caucasian countries. Asian children also have later bedtimes. There were no differences in night wakings or napping behaviors.

Hong Kong children are up the latest with an average bedtime of 10:10 p.m. Children in Indonesia, Taiwan and Korea also go to bed after 10 p.m. Children in New Zealand go to bed the earliest; their average bedtime is 7:16 p.m. Children in Australia and the U.K. also go to bed before 8 p.m. U.S. children have the seventh-earliest bedtime of 8:52 p.m.

An early bedtime helps New Zealand children get the most sleep; they sleep for an average of 13.3 hours per day. This total combines nightly sleep and daytime naps. Children in Australia and the U.K. also get more than 13 hours of daily sleep. U.S. children rank fifth with an average of 12.9 hours of total sleep time per day. Japanese children have the lowest total sleep time of 11.6 hours per day. Children in Indonesia and Korea also get less than 12 hours of sleep per day.

The AASM reports that newborns up to three months of age need about 16 to 20 hours of total sleep time per day. Infants between three months and 12 months of age need about 14 to 15 hours of sleep per day. Toddlers between the ages of one year and four years need about 12 to 14 hours of total sleep time.

Image by Fui

Sleep Around the World: France Ranks First, U.S. Second

A new OECD report compares 2006 time use surveys from 18 countries. Results show that people in France report getting the most sleep at about 8.8 hours per day.

The U.S. ranks second, just 12 minutes behind at about 8.6 hours of sleep per day. People in Korea and Japan get the least sleep at about 7.8 hours per day.

Why do the French get more sleep than Americans? One reason may be that they work less.

The report indicates that Americans work an average of 41.3 hours per week. People in France work an average of 37.3 hours per week.

A 2007 study in the journal Sleep analyzed data from previous American Time Use Surveys. Results suggest that work time is the strongest indicator of sleep time.

Tomorrow we’ll take a closer look at the survey data. We’ll see what it does and doesn’t tell us about the sleep of people in the U.S.

Image by Mirko Garufi