Fox News: Lack of sleep during pregnancy could impact baby's development, study reveals

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Lack of sleep during pregnancy could impact baby's development, study reveals

New research found that short sleep duration in pregnant women can lead to neurodevelopmental delays in their children after they are born. Experts discuss the risks and how to prevent them.......                    ...                        ...Sleep is crucial, especially for You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login.......Inadequate sleep during pregnancy can have many negative effects, including neurodevelopmental delays for the child, according to a new study.......The research, which was published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, examined the effects of You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login — defined as sleeping fewer than seven hours per night — on pregnant women.......You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login......The China-based researchers analyzed sleep data from 7,059 mother-child pairs from three Chinese hospitals. The children were screened for developmental delays from 6 months to 3 years old.......Insufficient sleep during pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of delays in You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login, the researchers found......."Our findings highlight the importance of addressing sleep quality during pregnancy to potentially mitigate the risk of long-term cognitive and behavioral issues in children," lead study author Peng Zhu, M.D., of Anhui Medical University and the MOE Key Laboratory of Population Health Across Life Cycle in Hefei, China, told Fox News Digital. ......"Additionally, we discovered that cord blood C-peptide levels partially mediate this association, indicating that maternal sleep might impact fetal glucose metabolism and, consequently, the You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login."......You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login......The neurodevelopmental delays can lead to slower development of social, emotional, behavioral, motor, cognitive or speech skills, the new study revealed.......Boys, compared to girls, have a higher risk of these issues when their mothers experience SSD, the researchers found......."This suggests that male fetuses might be more sensitive to the metabolic environment influenced by maternal sleep patterns," Zhu said......."This insight could lead to tailored interventions and a deeper understanding of how prenatal factors affect You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login in a sex-specific manner."......You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login......Pregnant women may have trouble sleeping due to hormonal changes, discomfort, frequent urination and other factors, the Endocrine Society noted in a press release.......Dr. Jillian LoPiano, a Miami-based OB-GYN and chief health officer at the reproductive telehealth platform Wisp, acknowledged that the study measured a "possible biological marker" in neurological development......."Much more research is needed to assess this relationship, but adequate sleep is known to be associated with proper growth and socioemotional development," she told Fox News Digital.......You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login......Poor sleep during pregnancy is also associated with other complications, including preeclampsia and You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login, LoPiano detailed.......The expert recommended that pregnant women who are experiencing trouble sleeping consult with a doctor.......She also shared a few You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login that can help improve sleep, including sleeping in a cool, dark room, minimizing screen time and distractions before bed, having adequate wind-down time, meditating and using support pillows.......The study researchers reiterated the importance of sleep hygiene......."You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login should be advised on strategies to improve sleep hygiene, such as maintaining a consistent sleep schedule, creating a relaxing bedtime environment, and avoiding caffeine and electronic devices before bed," Zhu told Fox News Digital.......You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login......The researchers also recommend that health care providers screen pregnant women for sleep quality and provide guidance on achieving sufficient sleep. ......"Furthermore, monitoring and managing You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login, which is linked to sleep patterns, should be emphasized," Zhu added.......The study did have some potential limitations, the researchers acknowledged......."As an observational study, we can only establish associations rather than causality," Zhu told Fox News Digital.......You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login......"Additionally, sleep duration was self-reported, which may introduce some level of bias." ......Future studies with objective sleep measurements and larger sample sizes could help to validate the findings, the researcher added....

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