April 1, 2006

Kids need plenty of sleep to rest their growing bodies and minds, especially as they head into the teen years. When kids don’t get enough sleep, it can zap their moods, their school performance, and the amount of energy they have to play.

But a new KidsHealth® KidsPoll shows that kids aren’t getting enough sleep, and that even if they resist bedtime, they want some zzzs!

Results of the Poll

• On average, kids were short nearly 90 minutes of sleep each night.
• 70% of kids said they would like to get more sleep than they usually get.
• 39% of kids said they feel very sleepy when it’s time to wake up on schooldays.
• 40% of kids said they’re tired or sleepy at school every day or often.

The national KidsPoll surveyed 1,187 9- to 13-year-old boys and girls on their sleep habits. Kids answered the questions on handheld data devices while visiting health education centers and children's museums around the country.

Why Kids Need Sleep

For kids — and adults — sleep is an essential part of resting and regulating the body and mind. When kids aren’t getting enough sleep, they’re often irritable, unable to cope with stress, not fully alert in school, and not as eager to participate in activities or to take on new challenges.

And emotional well-being isn’t the only reason kids need sleep. The body’s immune system also doesn’t perform as well when a person is chronically sleep deprived. So without enough rest, the body can have trouble fighting off infections. That means more sick days for your child — and you.

Keep in mind that you'll probably recognize when your child needs sleep before he or she does. You might not hear "I’m tired," but knowing that your child got to bed late and woke up early makes it easy to recognize fatigue as the cause of his or her moodiness. Your child may also have dark circles under the eyes, seem pale, and just look worn out.

Helping Your Child Get to Sleep

So how much sleep do kids need? In general, kids ages 9 to 12 need about 10 to 11 hours of sleep each night. Kids 13 and older need a little more than 9 hours a night.

Here are some things you can do to help your child get a good night’s sleep:

Make a bedtime routine and stick to it. Kids tend to resist going to bed, so it’s important to establish a time for sleep and stick to it. If you enforce bedtime sporadically, your child will know that you’re open to letting bedtime slide and will be likely to keep fighting it.

Help your child to set up a bedtime routine that includes soothing activities — like reading, doing some stretching exercises, or taking a bath or shower — that will begin the process of slowing down in preparation to sleep. It will also help your child get in the mood to rest.

About 30 minutes before bedtime, give your child a heads-up that it will soon be time to finish any activities.

Set weekend bedtimes. Weekends are a great time to get some extra sleep. But inevitably, the crush of activities and events like sleepovers can end up depriving kids of the sleep they need and leave them tired and strung out before the school week even begins. And without school the next morning, kids often want to stay up late on weekends.

Believe it or not, you can have it both ways. If you let your child have a late night or a sleepover with friends, arrange it for Friday night, thus leaving the rest of the weekend for recovering and catching up on rest.

With sleepovers, encourage a morning pick-up time. When kids are recovering from sleep deprivation, it's best to let them nap, but try to get them to stick to their usual sleeping schedules as much as possible. So if your daughter returns Saturday morning from a sleepover where she stayed up all night, let her take a nap right away but then stick to the normal bedtime that night.

Make sure your child has a healthy setting for sleep. Your child should have a place to sleep that’s cozy and conducive to snoozing. Make sure that your child’s bed is comfortable and the bedroom isn’t too hot or cold.

The room should be dark, but it’s a good idea to have a nightlight if your child needs to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. Keep temptations like TV or video games out of your child’s room.

It’s best not to allow pets to sleep in your child’s room. Kids love to cuddle up with their cats and dogs, but pets can keep kids awake if they make noises (dogs can be really loud snorers!) or want to play.

Head off bedtime troubles during the day. You can do things during the day to help your child get to bed at a decent time and get a good night’s sleep:

• If your child is younger, consider ruling out scary or violent TV shows, movies, or books before bedtime, as they can lead to nightmares.
• Make sure your child has had some vigorous exercise during the day. Sixty minutes per day is recommended.
• Avoid giving your child any caffeinated foods or drinks late in the day. If your child is taking any medications, find out whether they can affect sleep.

Find out why your child is staying awake. Talk with your child’s doctor if your child continues to have trouble sleeping.

About the Poll

The KidsPoll is a collaboration of the Nemours Foundation/KidsHealth, the Department of Health Education and Recreation at Southern Illinois University - Carbondale, the National Association of Health Education Centers (NAHEC), and participating health education centers throughout the United States. Those centers include:

• Children’s Health Education Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• Robert Crown Center for Health Education, Hinsdale, Illinois
• HealthWorks! Kids Museum, South Bend, Indiana
• Health World Children's Museum, Barrington, Illinois
• McMillen Center for Health Education, Ft. Wayne, Indiana
• Robert Crown Center for Health Education, Hinsdale, Illinois
• Ruth Lilly Health Education Center, Indianapolis, Indiana
• Susan P. Byrnes Health Education Center, York, Pennsylvania
• Poe Center for Health Education, Raleigh, North Carolina
• Weller Health Education Center, Easton, Pennsylvania

Reviewed by: Kathleen M. Cronan, MD
Date reviewed: April 2006