Supporting your Baby’s Sleep Starting in Pregnancy

Aug 26

Pregnancy is such a transformative time in a woman’s life. It is said that women become mothers the moment they realize they are pregnant, and I really do believe the mothering starts in the womb! I want you to feel empowered to make choices while pregnant that will support healthy sleep for your baby at birth, and throughout their life. In this blog I’ll discuss 4 key ways you can impact your baby’s sleep before they are even born.

1.Take a quality probiotic and eat probiotic foods.

Probiotics support gut health, and a healthy gut is the first defense against immune reactions that can cause food intolerances. When you take a quality probiotic, it supports your gut flora. Your baby is inoculated with your gut flora as they make their way through the birth canal during labor and delivery. In addition, the probiotic you take, and the probiotic foods you eat are passed onto your baby through the placenta, which in turn strengthens the formation of their own microbiome. How does all of this impact sleep? Infants with a compromised or sub-optimal gut microbiome are more likely to experience food intolerances which can cause tummy upset, digestive issues, and reflux; all of which are big sleep disruptors. Gut health also helps protect your little one from infectious diseases, keeping them healthy throughout their first year of life and beyond! Breastfeeding your infant is another great way to continue to support their healthy gut. You can also supplement your infant with a quality probiotic, as soon as they are born. Ask your doctor about their recommendations for a probiotic supplement while you are pregnant, and one for your baby once they are born.

2. Eat iron-rich foods during pregnancy and take an iron supplement.

Low iron in pregnancy is associated with shorter sleep duration in infants and more nighttime wakings. Low iron (specifically ferritin) in pregnant mothers and infants; can impact your baby’s ability to organize sleep for their lifetime! (you can read the studies I have linked below for more detailed information). Taking iron and eating iron rich foods (specifically animal meat which contain “heme” iron, or iron in its activated form) can set your baby up for their best lifetime of sleep. If you happen to have an older child with difficulty settling to sleep, and multiple nighttime wakings, testing for low iron (ferritin) can be a key piece to solving the sleep puzzle, but being preventative by upping your iron stores in pregnancy, is the best way to support your baby’s development of a healthy sleep cycle.

3. Make sure “delayed cord-clamping” is in your birth plan, and discuss it with your doctor prior to labor and delivery.

Delaying cord clamping for 3-4 minutes has been shown to improve iron status in infants and decrease the risk for iron-deficiency for infants up to 4 months of age (studies linked below). As discussed above, low iron status can have lasting impacts of the development of your child’s ability to “organize” sleep, making it more difficult for them to settle into sleep and remain asleep. These impacts can last a lifetime! Delaying cord-clamping is a simple strategy that can improve your baby’s iron stores significantly, yet many doctor do not practice this. Make sure you are explicit with your doctor BEFORE labor and delivery, that you would like them to delay cord-clamping for at least 3-4 minutes, and put it in writing in your birth plan. If you are planning to birth with a midwife, you may be happy to find that this is already considered standard practice, but it can’t hurt to ask.

4. Educate yourself about newborn sleep and make a plan with your partner to cope with broken sleep.

One of the best ways to support your little one with healthy sleep is to understand how normal infant sleep works, and make plans to cope with the reality of healthy newborn sleep patterns (hint; healthy newborn sleep is fragmented)! My Newborn Sleep Foundations guide and Educational call is all about educating and empowering you around the realities of newborn sleep, and ways you can optimize their sleep and your own, without sacrificing your baby’s development. I can also help you, and your partner, come up with strategies to cope with the first few months of your baby’s life so that everyone feels supported and more well rested. Here are some topics I would recommend exploring with your partner prior to the birth of your baby (these are also things that are covered in the Newborn Education Package).

Safe Infant Sleep (AAP Sleep Guidelines, Safe Sleep Seven for Bed-sharing)
Partner roles and responsibilities overnight
Supporting breastfeeding overnight
Strategies for soothing a fussy baby
Identifying members of your support system, and ways they can support your family during this time of broken sleep

So much happens during pregnancy that can impact your baby’s health for a lifetime. I hope you will feel empowered to make choices that support your baby’s sleep from birth through the rest of their life! Here’s to your healthiest pregnancy!

Sources:

Andersson, O., et. al. (2011, November 15). Effect of delayed versus early umbilical cord clamping on neonatal outcomes and iron status at 4 months: a randomised controlled trial. https://www.bmj.com/content/343/bmj.d7157

KC, A., et. al. ( 2016, March 10). Effect of timing of umbilical cord clamping on anaemia at 8 and 12 months and later neurodevelopment in late pre-term and term infants; a facility-based, randomized-controlled trial in Nepal. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4787033/

Lozoff, B., et. al. (2006, May). Long-lasting neural and behavioral effects of iron deficiency in infancy. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16770951/

Peraino, P.D., et. al. ( 2010, August). Sleep alterations and iron deficiency anemia in infancy. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3632071/

Peraino, P.D., et. al. (2007, December). Iron Deficiency Anemia in Infancy Is Associated with Altered Temporal Organization of Sleep States in Childhood. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2367007/

Tedeschi, M. (2018, November). Gut Health and Sleep in Children. Nexwellness.com