Are your kids getting enough sleep?

Aman ZaidiAugust 2014

Signs that your child is not getting enough sleep• Not being able to wake up fairly easily in the morning, not feeling

rested, along with not feeling overly tired during mid-afternoon

• Irritability, low mood, hyperactivity, sleepiness, poor attention span,craving sugary foods and short temperedness

• Pay attention to changes in your child. Are your kids participating inschool and other activities as usual? Are they dragging?

• If your child is hyper, inattentive, irritated, annoyed and has troublecontrolling their emotions

• Poor or inadequate sleep can lead to mood swings, behavioralproblems such as ADHD and cognitive problems that impact ontheir ability to learn in school.

Signs that your child is not getting enough sleep (continued)

• Can’t fall asleep within 15 to 30 minutes

• Does not wake easily from her/his sleep

• She/he is awake and alert throughout the day

• Often falls asleep in the car

Sleep is important because…

• Certain hormones are released in the body during that time that help with growth, development and normal immune function.

• Adequate sleep aids school and sports performance, behavior, attention, memory and concentration.

• Inadequate sleep in children has been linked to obesity and poor cardiovascular health.

It’s a very simple fix!

How much daily sleep (including naps) is enough?

Source: Sleep Health Foundation

Age0-2

months2 months -

1 year1 -3 years 3-5 years 5-12 years

12-18 years

Hours per day

12 - 18 14 - 15 12 - 15 11 - 13 9 - 11 8.5 - 9.5

What are 'normal' wake-up and bedtimes?

Age4-6

months7-9

months10-15

months2.5 -3 years

4.5 - 5 years

6.5 - 7 years

8.5 - 9 years

Wake time (AM)

7:30 7:15 7:00 7:15 7:15 7:30 7:45

Sleep onset (PM)

8:00 8:00 8:00 8:15 8:30 8:45 9:00

Source: Murdoch Children's Research Institute, December 2013

Additional tips for sleep time

• Calming activities include reading, taking a bath, drinking milk and

giving hugs and kisses.

• Stop all exciting or stressful activities (such as studying, sports, intense

play or video games) or TV and computers at least an hour before

bedtime and instead encourage children to read books or engage in

other calm and quiet routines before bed.

• Continue to emphasize need for regular and consistent sleep schedule

and bedtime routine. Don’t mess this up on the weekend and expect

kids to be able to go back to the routine on weekdays. They’re not

adults.

• Exercise earlier. Experts recommend kids get at least an hour of exercise

per day every day. While daytime exercise can contribute to sleeping

better at night, vigorous exercise too close to bedtime may just keep kids

awake, so try to plan your child's physical activity accordingly.

Additionally:

Are we trying to send our children to the best possible school in order to encourage their all-round development?

But in doing so are we compromising on her/his sleep needs that will ultimately affect her/his behavioural, social and cognitive development?

Picking a good school is important but pick one that has reasonable timings that allow the child to not feel pressured for sleep and leisure!

Sources:1. http://sleepfoundation.org/sleep-topics/children-and-sleep/page/0%2C2/

2. http://edition.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/expert.q.a/05/24/child.sleep.needs.shu/index.html?er

ef=rss_latest

3. http://edition.cnn.com/2014/05/22/health/kids-sleep-tips/

4. http://www.childtime.com/parent-resource-center/parenting-articles/is-my-child-getting-

enough-sleep/

5. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-14/explainer-childrens-sleep-patterns-world-sleep-

day/5320622

6. http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/health/mdmama/2014/05/is_your_child_getting_enough_

sleep.html

7. http://psychcentral.com/lib/hints-to-help-kids-get-enough-sleep/0007652

8. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-jim-taylor/how-your-children-can-get_b_3492410.html

9. http://sleepfoundation.org/ask-the-expert/what-happens-when-my-child-or-teen-

doesn%E2%80%99t-get-enough-sleep

Pledge to change one thing to correct your kids’ sleep

hours, TODAY!

Thank You.