Mom's depression affects baby's sleep

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Sept. 4 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say babies born to depressed moms are more likely to have chaotic sleep patterns.

Researchers at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor found babies born to women with depression had little or no evidence of a 24-hour circadian rhythm soon after birth -- unlike the babies born to women who weren't depressed.

"We think we've identified one of the risk factors that may contribute to these infants' going on to develop depression later in life," study leader Roseanne Armitage says in a statement. "Not everybody who has poor sleep or weak circadian rhythms will develop depression, but if sleep stays consistently disrupted and circadian rhythms are weak, the risk is significantly elevated."

Whether a mother is depressed or not, Armitage says, it is crucial to help all babies -- and new parents -- to get the sleep they need.

She suggests going to bed and getting up at the same time and establishing rituals around bedtime. By four months of age, a baby should be getting enough sleep on an increasingly regular schedule so that the blocks of sleep become longer at night.

The results are to be presented at the European Sleep Research Society meeting held in Glasgow, Scotland.