The Effects of Noise During REM Sleep in Infants
Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is defined as the brief period of rest in which an individual's eyes visibly move but muscles are mostly inactive. A person will fall into REM sleep several times throughout the night, and dreams can occur in one or all of these intervals. While adults spend only about 20 percent of a night's rest in this sleep phase, an infant spends at least 50 percent of rest time in REM sleep.
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Growth of the Mind
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Infants spend much more time than adults in REM sleep because it is crucial to the growth of a baby's developing mind. In REM sleep, regions of the brain associated with learning and functioning are stimulated, and an infant may actually improve memory and mental skills during this time. It is important to avoid disruptions like loud noises and excessive movement during this period of light rest, so as not to awaken the baby. Since an infant is in REM sleep for at least half the night, he may be prone to waking frequently if not at peaceful rest.
Good and Bad Noise
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While too much stimulus may wake an infant during the REM sleep phase, some soothing noises and movements can actually lull the baby into a deeper sleep. Rocking motions and soft humming or white noise can be helpful in putting an infant to sleep. If the sounds or movements are stressful to the infant, however, the sleep period could be disturbed, especially in the REM phase, which is the lightest sleep interval. Babies do not have the same sleep cycle as adults do, and though most adults can sleep through the night, an infant is likely wake several times with or without a disturbance.
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REM Sleep is Needed
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If REM sleep is consistently or frequently interrupted during an infant's rest cycle, it may prevent the baby from properly developing necessary mental functions. If the baby is awoken from REM sleep suddenly, she will likely react by crying out to alert her parents of the disturbance. An infant should also be learning a sleep schedule a few months after birth, but if REM sleep is compromised, it may not be easy to develop a restful pattern.
Avoid Disturbances
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An infant can usually sleep through the common noise of a household, and that type of noise should not disrupt the rest period. In the event that an abrupt noise rouses your infant during REM sleep, try to lull the baby back into a restful state to promote good sleeping patterns. If your child finds subtle sounds to be comforting and helpful to REM sleep, you can use them as a nightly technique to ease your child to into sleep.
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References
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