The Dangers of Sleep Deprivation on Children

This is a third blog in my series about the importance of sleep and the possible terrible ramifications of too little sleep.  Even though this doesn't appear to be a particularly popular subject (very few people have been interested in this, so far), I think that the proper amount and quality of sleep lies at the foundation of the health of this nation.

At least 25 percent of 12-year-olds get less than the recommended nine hours of sleep per night and there is increasing evidence that this impacts learning and memory," said Dr. Stuart F. Chan of Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, who helped write the new American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) guidelines.

The new recommendations, online now on the AASM website and scheduled for publication in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, "use a more rigorous evaluation of the scientific literature than was used previously," Chan told Reuters Health by email. "The range of recommended hours of sleep for each age grouping is wider than before," but the guideline still stresses that children and teenagers "need substantial amounts of sleep."
For optimal health, children and teens should get the following hours of sleep (per 24 hours) on a regular basis:

• Infants four months to one year of age: 12-16 hours, including naps;
• Children one to two years old: 11-14 hours, including naps;
• Children three to five years old: 10-13 hours, including naps;
• Children six to 12 years old: 9-12 hours;
• Teenagers 13-18 years old: 8-10 hours.

The following statement concerns me the most:

"Insomnia, which affects up to one in four adolescents and one in three preschoolers, is associated with "poor school performance, increased mood and health problems and risk of self-harm and suicidal ideation," said Chan. It's also associated with increased risk of developing a new medical problem and starting the use of a new psychiatric medication."

Perhaps now, we might have one answer to the question as to why so many of our children have hyperactive syndrome, have cognitive deficits and have been put on so many behavior-modifying and psychotrophic drugs!

Please, pass this information along to anyone you know who is parenting children.  Also, know that there is help for children (and adults) with sleep deprivation problems...Dr. Thomas and I have helped many with sleep issues.

Dr. Esther & Dr. Thomas
fixdhealthcare.com, corehealing360.com