According to the Sleep Research Institute, in the last 25 years bedtime has been delayed by 30 minutes. There seems to be a general tendency to extend the schedule before going to bed, which causes children go to bed later.
Sleeping less than they need has consequences for children's health, from irritability, behavioral problems, to a greater predisposition to serious diseases such as obesity and childhood diabetes and sleep disturbances in adulthood. Therefore, it is essential that since they are small they establish routines that favor sleep.
The director of the Sleep Research Institute, Dr. Diego García Borreguero, has said that 60 percent of Spanish children do not sleep the recommended 10 hours and, of them, 30 percent have symptoms of daytime sleepiness.
Sleep is closely related to childhood growth. The growth of the nervous system depends on the amount of hours the child sleeps and the quality of sleep, since during the first hour of sleep 60 percent of the total secretion of growth hormone occurs.
That is why the time to go to sleep must be preceded by quiet games, without external stimuli that alter the child, such as exposure to television at night, because an erroneous signal is sent to the brain and the child goes to spend more time on vigil.
Instead, we must provide a relaxed atmosphere, with soft music, dim light, and do quiet activities such as reading a story, doing a puzzle and at bedtime if the child is allowed to massage and caress.
It is important then to establish a reasonable time to go to bed to prevent children go to bed later. Accommodating family routines based on the hours the child should sleep is essential to achieve a healthy sleep.
Via | Sleep Research Institute
Photo | thejbird
In Babies and more | Little sleep is related to high levels of sugar in children, what is the best time for them to go to bed?
