Sleep is one of the most important things you can do for your child. It helps them grow, helps them learn, and develop, and can even make them better behaved! The first three years of life are especially critical for sleep development.
Sleep helps your child to learn.
Sleep is important for learning. When children sleep well, they are better at school and can learn new skills.
Learning happens when the brain processes information, stores it in memory, and organizes it into long-term memories. Sleep helps this process by providing rest to the body so that energy is conserved for brain activity during waking hours. In fact, research shows that sleep deprivation has negative effects on learning and memory performance in children as well as adults.
Sleep helps your child behave better.
Sleep deprivation can lead to poor concentration, mood swings, and irritability. It can also lead to hyperactivity and inattention, as well as depression and behavior problems (such as tantrums). The latter two are linked with sleep deprivation because they’re often caused by stress–and lack of sleep will only add more stress on your child’s plate!
Sleep helps both physical and mental health.
- Sleep helps to regulate hormones.
- Sleep helps to regulate body temperature.
- Sleep helps to regulate blood pressure.
Sleep helps to regulate heart rate, which is important for children with a family history of heart problems or who have been diagnosed with an arrhythmia (abnormal heart rhythm). Sleep also plays a role in reducing stress and anxiety levels, which may be associated with high blood pressure in children whose parents are hypertensive (hypertension is defined as having a systolic blood pressure higher than 140 mmHg). Finally, research has shown that kids who don’t get enough sleep tend not only to have higher levels of cortisol–the stress hormone–but also more difficulty regulating their emotions than those who get plenty of rest each night.
Sleep can help you bond with your child.
Sleep is a great time to bond with your child. It’s a time when you can focus on each other, relax and just be together. You can talk about the day’s events or play games that involve talking like “I Spy.” Bonding with your child is important for their development because it helps them feel safe and secure in the world around them.
Sometimes it can be difficult to maintain sleep routines during the Summer, good sleep behaviors are important for health and quality sleep. The AASM offers the following recommendations to help improve sleep health for children:
- Ensure your child gets enough sleep for their age. Children should get anywhere from 9-12 hours of sleep a night for school-aged children and 8-10 hours for teenagers.
- Keep consistent bedtimes and wake-up times, even on the weekends.
- Minimize screen time before bed.
- Ensure regular schedules for activities and get some time outdoors when possible.
- Maintain regular mealtimes and encourage a healthy diet.
Sleep is one of the main factors of a healthy lifestyle, along with proper nutrition and physical activity. Students who get the recommended hours of sleep tend to experience improved attention, behavior, learning, and memory. Making sure that your child gets healthy sleep will not only make your life easier as a parent but also improve your child’s overall well-being.