Overview: Bedsharing is common in the United States in spite of numerous public health campaigns telling parents not to do it. This suggests that generic, never-bedshare messaging does not result in safe-sleep behavior. It also suggests we know little about the characteristics of mothers who bedshare. This study addresses this gap by examining demographic characteristics of mothers including race/ethnicity, income, education, partner status, and maternal age.Sample: The sample was the U.S. cohort (N = 4,789) of the Survey of Mothers’ Sleep and Fatigue.Results: Consistent with previous findings, we found that African American and American Indian mothers were more likely to bedshare, as were lower income and single mothers. We also found that bedsharing mothers were more likely to have lower education levels, be younger age at first birth, and were less likely to be currently employed. There were also striking racial/ethnic differences on location of night feeds, where mothers think babies should sleep, and their reasons for engaging in their nighttime parenting practices.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the mothers’ demographics are related to bedsharing practices. Furthermore, simply describing bedsharing in terms of “cultural differences” oversimplifies a complex set of behaviors and beliefs. Safe sleep messaging, including safe bedsharing, needs to be tailored to address the various subgroups of mothers living in the United States.
Vital Signs: Trends and Disparities in Infant Safe Sleep Practices — United States, 2009–2015
