Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Enough regular sleep at consistent bedtimes is important:

Under the category of studies probably proving what is common sense; children need consistent and stable bedtimes that give them enough rest to refresh their bodies.

"Having regular bedtimes during early childhood is an important influence on children’s behavior. There are clear opportunities for interventions aimed at supporting family routines that could have important impacts on health throughout life."

Work done by Yvonne Kelly, PhD, John Kelly, BEng, and Amanda Sacker, PhD
Click here to see full text of abstract in Pediatrics 

"children who changed from a non-regular to a regular bedtime between ages 5 and 7 experienced a significant decline in behavior problems. They also report that children who changed from a regular bedtime to a non-regular bedtime between 5 and 7 experienced a significant, but smaller, increase in behavior problems. We applaud the authors' test of the reversibility of behavior problems associated with a non-regular bedtime. We have conducted similar tests of the reversibility of aggressive behaviors associated with sleep problems in the US; however, our models also address directionality, whereas Kelly and colleagues modeled only the pathway from sleep to behavior. As Kelly et al. noted, the direction of the causal link between sleep problems and aggression is unclear. While it is plausible that a lack of sleep leads to elevated aggression, it is also plausible that aggressive behavior disturbs sleep. Children who are aggressive may be unusually resistant to bedtime, find it difficult to fall asleep, or be frequently wakened by nightmares."

From Anne Martin, Senior Research Scientist, Lauren Hale and Jeanne Brooks-Gunn
Columbia University and Stony Brook University
Click here to read more

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