The Effect of Sleep Duration on Behavior in Toddlers: It's Not Just Environment

A specific form of the serotonin transporter gene mediates this association.

Children show different susceptibilities to the same environmental stresses; this is a principle of pediatric healthcare practice. One example is duration of sleep. A history of short sleep duration might adversely affect behavior in some children but not others. Evidence indicates that these differences might be genetically mediated. The serotonin transporter gene 5-HTTLPR carries a short allele and a long allele. The short allele has been associated with adult depression in the context of early childhood adversity.

To determine whether the 5-HTTLPR short allele mediates the relationship between sleep duration and emotional and behavioral dysregulation in young children, researchers analyzed data from 209 children enrolled in a longitudinal…

Reviewing Author

Martin T. Stein, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardPearson Neuroscience Advisory Board

Speaker’s bureauAmerican Academy of Pediatrics

RoyaltiesElsevier, Inc.

Editorial boardsJournal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics