Caffeine Given to Newborns May Wreck Sleep as Adults

Not that you were planning on getting your newborn all hopped up on the bean, but a new medical study conducted on rats in Canada draws the conclusion that caffeine consumption at the earliest stages of life may result in sleep disruption problems later in life.

Neonatal care often involves the administration of small doses of caffeine; respiratory failure is a primary cause of illness and death in newborns, and caffeine’s ability to stimulate respiration helps stabilize breathing patterns.

However, as reported in EurekAlert, the Canadian study conducted by Gaspard Montandon and a team of associates determined that rats given caffeine as babies required more time to fall asleep and exhibited irregular and unstable deep sleep patterns after they reached maturity. Montandon speculates that the sensitivity and rapid development of respiratory function at the first stages of life are susceptible to the long term effects delivered by caffeine.

The findings are noteworthy as irregular sleep patterns are a known predictor of a range of health problems and are associated with a shortened life span.

Photo courtesy of Julius Schorzman, via Wikimedia Commons