Babies Sleep Better In Their Own Rooms After 4 Months, Study Finds

Babies get less sleep at night and sleep for shorter stretches when they sleep in their parents' room after 4 months old, a new study finds. Parents are also more likely to engage in unsafe sleep practices, such as bringing their child into their bed or leaving pillows, blankets or stuffed animals with the baby when the infant shares their room.

The findings appear to contradict recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics for safe infant sleep, creating more confusion for parents trying to choose the safest, yet most practical and realistic, place for their babies to sleep.

The AAP recommends infants share a parents' room, but not a bed, "ideally for a year, but at least for six months" to reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Approximately 3,700 infants died of sleep-related causes in 2015, including 1,600 from SIDS, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Although this recommendation has technically been part of for years, it was largely overlooked due to the policy's wording until last October, were released.