Sleep is vital for people of all ages, but for children it is crucial. Sleep promotes their growth and proper development. When children sleep as long as they need, they become healthier and calmer.
Each child has his own individual sleep need, which may (up to 1 hour) differ from the recommended age norm:
• Up to 2 months – 11-18 hours;
• From 2 to 12 months – 14-15 hours;
• From 1 to 3 years – 12-14 hours;
• From 3 to 5 years – 11-13 hours;
• From 5 to 12 years old – 10-11 hours.
Ten reasons why kids need more sleep than adults
1. Sleep helps the heart.
Healthy sleep protects children from damage of heart tissue, especially in stressful situations. Moving, changes in family composition, prolonged separation – all these factors can affect children’s health.
With chronic sleep deprivation, cortisol and glucose levels remain elevated during the night, which also affects the heart. To cope with a lack of sleep, set a routine and create evening rituals in your family.
2. Sleep helps fight infection.
During sleep, the body makes special proteins called cytokines that involved in the response to infection and stress. The less we sleep, the fewer cytokines will help fight disease.
3. Sleep affects growth.
The growth hormone produced during the deep sleep phase. Children with various types of sleep disorders grow more slowly.
4. Sleep affects weight.
When a child is full, his body produces leptin, which serves as a signal of satiety. Lack of sleep inhibits the production of leptin. As a result, the feeling of fullness does not appear and the child eats more. Over time, these leads to excess weight gain, obesity and diabetes.
5. Sleep reduces the risk of type I diabetes.
Type I diabetes can occur as a complication of prolonged stress or illness. Studies have shown that deep sleep reduces the risk of type I diabetes by 24%.
6. Healthy sleep reduces the risk of injury.
Lack of sleep increases the risk of injury due to carelessness, loss of focus, or loss of coordination. Good sleep can help to prevent many accidental injuries.
7. Sleep affects attentiveness.
Half an hour of extra sleep at night can improve your child’s mood and performance. The best regimen for children is to go to bed at 9 p.m. In this case, the child gets the right amount of sleep, even if he wakes up early.
8. Sleep helps the child learn.
In the first year of life, the child receives a lot of information and acquires many skills. Most of this information processed and captured during sleep. Children who sleep for about an hour right after school remember more information.
9. Sleep develops emotional intelligence.
Children with healthy sleep patterns are more accurately determine the emotions and feelings of other people and more capable of empathy and help.
10. Sleep develops speech.
During the deep sleep phase, the information received during the day, including linguistic information, is analyzed and organized. Babies who sleep soundly and well in the first month of life begin to speak faster and actively replenish their vocabulary.
