Moe Kura: a longitudinal study of mother and child sleep and well-being in Aotearoa New Zealand

ABSTRACT

Moe Kura is a longitudinal study focused on the role of sleep in the health and well-being of mothers and children in Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ). The leadership, design and conduct of the study is informed by Kaupapa Māori research principles and is positioned within a broader rights-based approach to health, recognising that inequities in health must be identified and understood to improve the health of wāhine Māori and tamariki. In late pregnancy 418 Māori women and 768 non-Māori women were recruited and data collected at four waves (35–37 weeks gestation, 4–6 weeks postpartum, 11–13 weeks postpartum and when the Moe Kura child was 3–4 years of age) with linkage to birth records and national administrative datasets and associated qualitative research. Findings demonstrate substantial inequities in sleep health, infant and maternal health, and maternal employment between Māori and non-Māori, along with the important role of sleep in perinatal health and maternal mental health outcomes. The research philosophy that underpins the study, the primary focus on women, and the detailed measurement of sleep during the childbearing years has provided new and important findings that contribute to intervention development and health policy for women and children in NZ.

KEYWORDS:

• Health inequities
• health disparities
• sleep duration
• sleep quality
• sleep disorders
• pregnancy
• postpartum
• mental health
• birth outcomes
• preschoolers

Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the contribution of the participating women and children. We also thank individuals and organisations who assisted in promoting the study during participant recruitment, the research assistants who helped with data entry, and the study advisory group for their guidance and support. Thank you to Monique Priston, Alexander Smith, Philippa Gander, Kathy Lee, Mark Huthwaite, Laura Howe and Josefine Böjeryd for their contributions to the study. We acknowledge the late Dr. Te Huirangi Waikerepuru (Taranaki, Ngāpuhi) who gifted the name ‘Moe Kura’ to our study explaining that it was related to the concept of ‘te au moe kura i te ao mārama – the peaceful treasured sleep as of the child into the world of ancient wisdom, wonderment and light’. We also thank Simunovich Olive Estate who donated samples of their beauty products which were included in the study packs mailed to each of the research participants.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This study was conducted with funding from the Health Research Council of New Zealand (HRC 08/547 and 09/255) and Massey University.