Sharing a Bed With Your Kid? It’s Totally Normal in Asia.

In the United States and some other Western countries, many parents wince at the idea of sharing a bed with their young child on a regular basis.

But in other places, long-term bed sharing through infancy, toddlerhood and beyond is seen as totally normal. For many families in Asia, in particular, the question is not whether to do it, but when to stop.

How and where young children sleep is a big deal for the whole family. It can have implications for an infant’s safety and a child’s development. It can also affect parental sleep, intimacy and mental health, and can influence how families configure their homes.

In South Korea, many parents bed share because they want to savor a close relationship with young children “who one day won’t need them anymore,” said Inae Kim, an office manager in Seoul. She sleeps in two adjacent king-size beds with her husband and their two girls, ages 5 and 7.

“They want to enjoy the moment,” Ms. Kim, 40, said over an iced latte in her high-rise apartment complex. Though her girls slept in cribs until they were 6 months old, they’ve grown up bed sharing with their parents.