Women Can’t Sleep Through the Cries of a Baby, Men Can

Some young mothers often accuse their partner of pretending to be asleep when, in the dead of night, the baby starts crying and needs immediate attention. A new study cited by the Daily Mail comes now to show that this is actually true, since men are able to sleep through the noise made by a crying baby, while women are quickly awakened by it because of their maternal instincts kicking in.

Researchers at MindLab institution conducted this study to show the importance of getting a good night’s sleep, as well as to establish which are the exact noises that can cut sleep short for men and women. For the latter, it would seem that the cries of a baby come in at number one on the list of possible causes to interrupt sleep, because the maternal instinct is very strong even in those women who are not yet mothers, researchers say. Men, on the other hand, are undisturbed by the crying.

“There is nothing more likely to leave you feeling drained and depressed than disturbed sleep, especially when this happens over several nights. As this unique study shows while some sounds, for instance your partner coughing or snoring beside you, disturb men and women equally, other noises such as a howling wind cause men to be more disturbed than women. Women are more likely to be disturbed by a crying baby,” psychologist Dr. David Lewis, who conducted the study, says of the findings.

Other things that can disturb a woman’s sleep other than a baby crying include a dripping tap, outside noise, snoring, a fly or mosquito, the sound of drilling or noise made by workmen, car sirens, car alarms, howling wind, and noise coming from drains. The study has established that men are disturbed by car alarms, howling wind, a fly or a mosquito, snoring, outside noise, crickets, sirens, the ticking of the clock, sound of drilling or noise made by workmen, and a dripping tap.

“These differing sensitivities may represent evolutionary differences that make women sensitive to sounds associated with a potential threat to their children while men are more finely tuned to disturbances posing a possible threat to the whole family,” Dr. Lewis further says.