Experts unveil new sleep guidelines for children

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine, with the help of a panel of experts, has released its first everofficialrecommendations forhow much shut-eye children need.

UBC sleep specialistand nursing professor Wendy Hall, the only Canadianon the13-member panel, says the recommendations are importantbecause lack of sleep is a growing trend.

"Most parents and care providersdon't really know how much sleep children should be getting," she said in a news release. Few people are educated about sleep, she added.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has endorsed the newchildhood sleep guidelines, which were published Monday in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

Theyare similarto ones issued by the Canadian Paediatric Society (CPS), says society member Dr. Tracey Bridger.She says people don't take sleep as seriously as they should, and that a good night's sleep is as important as what you eatand whetheryou exercise.

That's whyCPS will endorse the Canadian 24 Hour Movement Behaviour Guidelines for Children and Youth later this month, she says.

Thoseguidelines"will harmonize recommendations for physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep, and will represent the first time these behaviours are integrated as a single recommendation," according to its website.

"Sleep is absolutely integral to physical growth as well as development, cognitiveand emotional development,"says Dr. Hilary Myron, apediatric sleep specialist at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa. "It's absolutely critical."

To make sure parents are informed,the pediatrician says she hasthe current Canadian guidelines"plastered" on thewalls of her clinics.

For people of all ages,the right amount of sleepimproves attention, behaviour, memory, and overall mental and physical health.Failing to get enough sleep has dire consequences: it is associated with an increase in injuries, hypertension, obesity and depression.

So what can parents do to avoid sleep-deprived and cranky children? "It's having a consistent sleep routine, sevendays a week, with a consistent sleep time and wake time," Myron told CBC News."And removing screens from their children'sbedroom."

That means, no iPads, iPhones orTV.

If parents are worried their kids are getting too littleortoo much sleep, Myron says they should consult their doctor.

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