Marital Discord Disrupts Baby's Sleep

A fight with your spouse can often lead to a restless night, but you might be shocked to learn you’re not the only one impacted – your baby’s sleep can also be affected by your marital strife.

A ground-breaking joint study between U.K. and U.S. psychologists examined the correlation between the healthiness of parental relationships and the sleep patterns of babies in over 300 cases. Researchers found that sleep disruption occurred as early as 18 months in babies where the marital relationship was strained.

Though prior studies have been done on the impact of marital problems on infant sleep patterns, this study is unique in that it rules out genetics as a possible factor in behaviour and development – unlike other research conducted on the subject, all the infants in this study were adopted.

Study member Professor Gordon Harold, out of the U.K.’s University of Leicester, explains, “'When parents and children are biologically related, any association between how parents behave and attributes of child behaviour may be explained by common genetic factors (same genes underlying parent and child behaviour).” This study removed that factor.

One of the most important findings out of the study was the earliness in which sleep disruption can occur. “Disrupted sleep patterns early in life have serious implications for children’s long-term development,” and may affect children both emotionally and academically as they grow.

It was found that marital strife at nine months was a predictor for sleeping difficulties at 18 months , even in light of other factors, such as order of birth, parental anxiety and the temperament of the baby. The study did not find a correlation, however, between an increase in marital strife due to a child having difficulty sleeping.