Who can be in this research study?
- You live within 45 minutes of Amherst, MA
- You are breastfeeding/chestfeeding/expressing milk for an infant who is less than 6 weeks old
- The infant was born at full-term (at least 37 weeks gestation)
- You are at least 18 years old
- Parents who plan to breastfeed/chestfeed/express milk for an infant that is not born yet are also eligible to learn more and connect with the study team before the birth
What is this study about?
- The purpose of this research study is to learn more about sleep patterns in breastfeeding/chestfeeding/milk expressing parents after the birth of an infant. As a parent with an infant, your sleep pattern has likely changed since before the birth of your child. We want to learn more about the sleep patterns of new breastfeeding parents and also look at how changes in sleep might impact what is in your milk for your infant.
- In this study we can do entirely “non-contact” visits where the study team will pick up your samples without coming into your home.
What is involved in this study?
- You will wear a device on your wrist throughout the study which will track your sleep. We will also look at how a hormone called cortisol changes over time in your body and your infant’s body – we will look at this hormone by collecting saliva. In addition, we will collect dirty diapers (with poop, also known as feces or stool) to look at how the bacterial communities in your infant’s gut changes over time after birth. In addition to collecting human milk, saliva, and infant feces (poop), we will also ask you questions about your sleep and how you feel.
If you’re interested in learning more, please click here to answer a couple of questions so we can get in contact with you.
Need more information or have questions? Click here.
