HOW MUCH SLEEP DO I NEED?
Here are general sleep guidelines from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. They show that sleep changes as we age, but experts say there is no magic number for sleep, with individual needs varying.
Newborns: 16-18 hours a day
Preschool-age children: 11-12 hours a day
School-age children: at least 10 hours a day
Teens: 9-10 hours a day
Adults (including the elderly): 7-8 hours a day
It looks and feels like summer — which is not surprising. After all, we are still in July.
Even so, summer is about to come to a screeching halt for children across metro Atlanta. In fact, some kids are beginning to head back to school this week, with more following in the next week or two. That means no more sleeping until 9 a.m. or 10 a.m. (or noon for teenagers).
It’s time for more Zzs and pulling back on screen time. Sleep (or lack thereof) and technology often go hand in hand. Nearly three out of four children (72 percent) between the ages of 6 and 17 have at least one electronic device in their bedrooms while sleeping, according to a survey of parents by the National Sleep Foundation. Children who leave those electronic devices on at night sleep less — up to one hour less on average per night, according to a poll of about 1,100 parents released by the foundation earlier this year.
Dr. Stephanie Walsh, medical director of child wellness at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, offers the following tips to help ease our children (and ourselves) into an earlier morning routine.
Develop a relaxing nighttime routine: What's the best way to wake up on the right side of the bed? Start the night before. Whether it's a bath, reading a book or listening to soothing music, every child has things that help them relax before going to sleep.
Power off: The hour before bed should be a no-electronics zone. Studies show the light from back-lit electronics (like tablets, smartphones and video games) can disrupt our ability to fall — and stay — asleep. Designate a spot in your home for electronics to be plugged in, and have your kids start their bedtime routine by plugging in one hour before lights out.
Get up and get outside: The best way to shake off summer slumber is to get some sunshine. So on those first days of your new routine, have the kids start their day by watering the flowers, walking the dog or having a healthy breakfast on the patio — anything that exposes them to daylight first thing.
Dial down the screen time: Reduce screen time by 30 minutes (or more, depending on your child's level of obsession) each week until your reach your goal. (Rule of thumb: Try to limit recreational screen time to 60 minutes every day. For every 30 minutes of screen time, make sure your kids get 30 minutes of physical activity.) It's not just TV. Screen time includes time spent on TVs, computers, tablets, phones and video games outside of school work and leisure reading. Sobering fact: Kids ages 8-18 now spend, on average, a whopping 7.5 hours in front of a screen for entertainment each day, 4.5 of which are spent watching TV, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Replace screen time with an activity: It's hard to get kids off the couch and get them moving, especially if they think of physical activity as "exercise" or "boring." So, sometimes we need to get creative and make moving fun for kids. Ideas: a 20-minute-long family walk, 20 minutes of shooting hoops outside, 15 minutes of playing tag.
Ban hand-held devices from the bedroom: The burst of light from a phone (even if it's just to check the time) can break a sleep cycle. A regular alarm clock is best.
Establish good habits: Being distracted by phones, hand-held devices and TV shows during mealtime can not only lead to overeating, but additional unneeded screen time. And be a good role model: Parents, you are the role models in your home, so set a good example when it comes to screen time. Lead by example and encourage (but don't shame) your kids to do the same.
