What affects the age of first sleeping through the night?
OBJECTIVE
To ascertain the age at which an infant first sleeps regularly through the night and the factors affecting this age.


METHODS
A representative cross sectional sample of 700 infants in south-east England were studied. Information was collected on 511 (73.0%) of the infants by parental interview. Obstetric records were also examined.


RESULTS
Fifty per cent of babies slept through by 8 weeks and 75% by 12 weeks. Multivariate survival analysis used to investigate 61 potential factors found that a heavier birthweight, female gender and co-sleeping less than 2 hours or not at all; younger mothers, school leaving age less than 17 years, stress factors (divorce and no separation from partner for more than a month in the last 12 months); no central heating, and the baby not sharing a room with siblings were associated with an earlier age at which an infant first sleeps through the night.


CONCLUSIONS
Little of the variation between children in age of first sleeping through the night could be explained by these nine factors.
Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Biological Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom.
S M
SM
Adams
D R
DR
Jones
A
A
Esmail
E A
EA
Mitchell
D017677:Age Distribution; D000367:Age Factors; D001724:Birth Weight; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008423:Maternal Age; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011897:Random Allocation; D012737:Sex Factors; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology*