This study enrolled 200 mainly Māori pregnant women living in deprived areas of New Zealand and provided them with either a bassinet or wahakura (flax bassinet). Mothers were asked to sleep the infant in this device from birth. The researchers investigated breastfeeding, infant sleep position, the amount of infant head covering during sleep, the amount of bed-sharing (without the device), and maternal sleep and fatigue. At 1, 3 and 6 months, mothers completed questionnaires about babies’ sleep and at 1 month infra-red video was used to record the baby’s overnight sleep. Between-group comparisons revealed no differences at 1, 3, and 6 months in infant-adult direct bed-sharing, but at 6 months, the wahakura group reported twice the level of full breastfeeding (22.5% vs 10.7%; p=0.04). Maternal sleep and fatigue were not significantly different between groups. Video recordings identified no increase in head covering, prone/side sleep position, or bed-sharing in the wahakura group.
