During childhood, a good night's sleep is one of the most important things that a child can have - in fact, childhood experts agree that young children typically need between nine to ten hours a night in order to encourage proper body and development function. Yet if your child has trouble sleeping through the night, this can often seem like an impossible goal; however, you're not alone. Thanks to the popularity of stimulating technology in the home, like video games, computers and mp3 players, more and more children are finding it difficult to sleep through the night due to overstimulation. Add to the fact that many children are consuming diets full of sugar and carbs, and you have a recipe for a night full of tossing and turning!
Want to get your child to stop his or her sleepless nights and get the nine to ten hours that child experts recommend for ideal overall growth and health? Just follow these tips and your child will be off to dreamland in no time!
1. Limit the amount of time that your child spends in front of the computer or television set before bedtime. Just like with adults, children who spend the two hours up until their bedtime performing "overstimulating" activity can have difficulty falling asleep due to too much brain activity. Tell your child that there will be no video or computer games allowed before bedtime, and stick to this rule. You should notice a difference in your child's sleeping patterns almost immediate.
2. Have a consistent bedtime, even on the weekends. A child's body clock is a delicate thing, and can easily be disrupted if your child sleeps in too much on the weekends or goes to bed too late at night. Have your child go to bed and wake up at the same time everyday - if your child has exhibited particularly good behavior, award him or her by pushing back bedtime by an hour and a half; however don't go any more than this, or you'll disrupt your child's body clock!
3. Have your child's bedroom be used specifically for sleep only. If your child spends his or her time on the bed playing video or computer games, he or she will associate the bed with fun activities. Create an environment in the child's bedroom that encourages sleep - for example, don't have a computer in your child's bedroom, avoid leaving bright lights on and keep the bedroom at a cool temperature. The goal is to have your child realize that going to bed is equated to falling asleep, so try to prevent other activities from being done in your child's sleeping environment.
4. Avoid feeding your child a diet of mainly sugar and carbs. Sugar will cause your child to become hyperactive, which is especially detrimental towards getting a full night's sleep. Carbs are still necessary for a child's diet, but avoid feeding your son or daughter only carbs a few hours before bedtime, since this slowly burns off energy that will keep your child awake.
5. Get your child to exercise during the afternoon, as this will make his or her body tired just in time for bed. However, don't exercise within a few hours of bedtime, or else your child will still be on an energy high!
Getting your child to sleep through the night doesn't have to become a production. Just follow these simple tips for maximum effect, and your precious angel will soon be getting the nine to ten hours required for his or her healthy development.
By: Gareth Williams
The bedroom of the child and whatever you have mentioned about the sleep - body clock, etc. are so important. We have a child of 3 and she also regularly watches TV as long as 4 hours in the evening, causing late sleep. She also tries to play at bed. We will try to follow these information, and that will certainly help I guess.
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