Sleep-deprived parents may want to read the latest scientific literature on the transport of mammals instead of stumbling back to bed in the early hours.
Researchers have conducted a series of experiments to find out which approach to wailing infants settles the best.
After filming parents cuddling their babies, carrying them around, rocking them in a stroller, and laying them down, the scientists came up with an optimal strategy.
The team recommends that parents pick up their crying baby, walk around with them for five minutes, and then sit and hold them for five to eight minutes before laying them down again.
According to Dr Kumi Kuroda of the Riken Center for Brain Science, excessive crying is a major source of stress for parents. The 15-minute method is worth a try before they worry about the baby.
The insight came from research on animals that are helpless at birth, such as cats, dogs, mice, and humans. The transport response is an effect that occurs when young people are carried by their mother. The response may have evolved due to improved offspring survival rates.
The researchers used video recordings and baby heart monitors to rank four different approaches to soothing crying babies: holding the child while seated, putting them in a cot, holding them while walking or rocking them in a stroller. When babies were in motion, crying decreased. Putting the baby in a cot or sitting still with it did not help the situation.
After being carried around for five minutes, all of the babies stopped crying and almost half of them fell asleep. The danger wasn't over for the parents of the babies who settled. Almost a third of the babies woke up when they were put back to sleep.
The scientists studied the data from the heart monitor. When physical contact with the parent was lost, the babies' heart rates rose to wake them. If you tried to lie the baby down more gently, it wouldn't change anything. They fell into a deeper stage of sleep if they sat with the baby for five to eight minutes after walking.
Scientists aren't saying that the approach is a magic bullet for sleep-deprived parents. The research on infants in Japan and Italy needs to be looked at in larger studies.
According to a University of Trento paper, babies can have sleepless nights for a variety of reasons. If the baby has a stomach ache, this won't help. Many parents will have sleepless nights. Being a parent is like that.
Prof Ian St James-Roberts hopes the team will continue their work. He said that other studies show that babies cry less when they're carried. It would be great to know if the new guidelines improve things further.
Dr Betty Hutchon said that crying gives your baby a voice. Babies have different cries for different things such as hunger or fatigue. Parents experience what each cry means over time. There is no one answer or strategy that is perfect for every crying baby.
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