“Early to bed, early to rise” may be a popular nursery rhyme but is actually an essential part for everybody’s health. Unfortunately, some kids are woken up much earlier due to heavy traffic.
In the long run, lack of sleep or poor quality of sleep can hamper brain development, mood, creativity, behavior, and may predispose the child to obesity.
However, you sometimes can’t enforce the “early to bed, early to rise” mantra since your kids would insist on staying up late or sometimes wait for you to come home. Sometimes you also have difficulty waking him up in the morning. Well, here are some things you might want to do:
1. Enforce Regular Sleeping Hours
Your kids need to be tucked in around the same time every day. Regardless if it’s a school day, weekend, holiday or even vacation. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends the following amount of sleep every night:
Newborns – 10 to 19 hours (average 13.5 to 14 hours)
Infants (2-12 months) – 10 to 12 hours
Toddlers (1-3 years) – 10 to 12 hours
Preschoolers (3-5 years) – 10 to 11 hours
School age (6-12 years) – 10 to 11 hours
Adolescents – 9 to 10 hours
Wake them up at the same time although your kids might be allowed to sleep in at weekends. But make sure the difference in waking times between weekdays and weekends is not more than two hours.
If you have difficulty waking up your child in the morning, it’s not because he’s not a morning person but rather just lacking sleep or that he needs to go to bed earlier. A child who is getting enough sleep will be able to wake up on his own at the time that you need him to, and he will be happy doing it.
Children sometimes miss a few hours of sleep maybe because of a party or time difference during vacation, but as long as other routines are in place, like eating relevant times and getting enough sunshine in the daytime, then the body will adjust and everything will eventually fall into place after a few days.
2. Set A Bedtime Routine That Involves Calm Activities
Children should not be exposed to caffeine like chocolates, coffee, tea or soda, three to four hours before sleep. An hour before bed should be quiet time so they should not be exposed to anything stimulating like television and gadgets.
3. Kids Up To 5 Years Old Should Take Naps
Younger kids need more sleep because their brain is still developing. Do not forego nap time so your child will sleep earlier in the evening. Cutting off naps will increase crankiness and will persist until the night that might worsen their sleep. It doesn’t matter how long they sleep in the afternoon as long as it doesn’t go beyond 5 pm.
4. Regular Exercise And Sunrise During The Day Is Important
Playing releases endorphins that make them feel happy, soothed and relaxed. Melatonin is also produced by sunlight which regulates the body’s circadian rhythm.
5. Be A Good Example
Like all other routines, children adapt to their parents’ schedule. If daddy comes home late from work and wants to spend some quality time with his child, do something relaxing like reading a bedtime story. Reserve the horseplay for weekends.
Many parents fail to understand how much children really need to sleep. This is because the negative effects are not seen right away and only show up later in life.
Instead of a bedtime play, parents should let the child sleep early so he will not be cranky in the morning and can sit down with them for breakfast. Eating together is a fundamental bonding experience that promotes mental health.
Ultimately, getting good sleep is a basic human need, just like food or water. If a child is well rested, he is on the road to becoming a happy, self-confident, well-adjusted individual.
