COVID-19 babies: auto-videosomnography and parent reports of infant sleep, screen time, and parent well-being in 2019 vs 2020.

OBJECTIVE: The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted families, yet studies on its effects on infants and their parents have thus far been sparse and based mostly on retrospective parent reporting. This study aimed to prospectively evaluate the impact of COVID-19 living conditions on infant and parent sleep, as well as infant screen exposure, parent daytime sleepiness, and parent depression levels, using multi-method assessment. METHODS: Infant and parent data collected in 2020 were compared with a matched cohort collected in 2019. The total sample included 1518 US infants aged 1-18 months (M = 8.5, SD = 4.6; 54% boys). Auto-videosomnography metrics were obtained from the 14-day period prior to survey completion (number of analyzed nights: M = 12.11 SD = 2.66 in the 2019 cohort; and M = 11.91 SD = 2.41 in the 2020 cohort). Parents completed online questionnaires regarding their infant's sleep and screen exposure, as well as their own sleep quality, daytime sleepiness, and depression levels. RESULTS: Compared to 2019, infants in 2020 slept ∼40 min more per night on average, as indicated by auto-videosomnography. Infants additionally had earlier sleep timing, and increased parent-reported sleep-onset latency and nocturnal wakefulness. Infant screen time rose by 18.3 min per day for older infants, but remained stable for younger infants. Parents reported lower daytime sleepiness and higher depression symptomology during 2020, whereas no change was apparent in their sleep quality ratings. CONCLUSIONS: Restricted living conditions during COVID-19 in the USA led to increased infant screen exposure and parental depression, but also to increased infant sleep duration and reduced parent sleepiness. Future research is needed to examine the mechanistic pathways through which COVID-19 impacted on infant and parent well-being.

Sleep and screen exposure across the beginning of life: deciphering the links using big-data analytics.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Evidence for the association between screen time and insufficient sleep is bourgeoning, and recent findings suggest that these associations may be more pronounced in younger compared to older children, and for portable compared to non-portable devices. However, these effects have yet to be investigated within the beginning of life. Importantly, there are no data for the relationship between screen exposure and objectively measured infant sleep. This study examined the moderating role of age for both touchscreens' and television's relationship with sleep, using auto-videosomnography within a big-data sample of infants. METHODS: The sleep of 1074 infants (46% girls) aged 0-18 months was objectively assessed using computer-vision technology in this cross-sectional study. Sleep was additionally reported by parents in an online survey, as was infant exposure to screens. RESULTS: Age significantly moderated the relationship between daytime touchscreen exposure and sleep with a distinct pattern for younger infants, in which screen exposure was associated with decreased daytime sleep, but with a proposed compensatory increase in nighttime sleep consolidation. Compared to touchscreens, television exposure was less likely to be associated with sleep metrics, and age moderated this relationship only for daytime and 24-hour sleep duration. CONCLUSIONS: In young infants, a daytime-nighttime sleep "trade-off" emerged, suggesting that the displacement of daytime sleep by screens may lead to greater accumulation of sleep homeostatic pressure, which in turn facilitates more consolidated nighttime sleep.

Infant sleep during COVID-19: Longitudinal analysis of infants of US mothers in home confinement versus working as usual.

OBJECTIVES: This study longitudinally compared the sleep of infants in the United States whose mothers were in home confinement to those whose mothers were working as usual throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Mothers of 572 infants (46% girls) aged 1-12 months (M = 5.9, standard deviation = 2.9) participated. Assessments were conducted on 4 occasions from late March to May 2020. Infant sleep was measured objectively using auto-videosomnography. Mothers reported their sheltering status, demographic characteristics, and infant sleep. RESULTS: Infants of mothers in home confinement had later sleep offset times and longer nighttime sleep durations, compared to infants of mothers who were working as usual. At the end of March, these infants also had earlier bedtimes, more nighttime awakenings, and more parental nighttime visits, but differences were not apparent during April and May. CONCLUSIONS: Living restrictions issued in the United States may have led to longer sleep durations and temporary delays in sleep consolidation for infants of mothers in home confinement.