Week 10 – Sleep
Here in Wake County I am often amazed at how the school system figures out the many functions and rules each school implements. One of my biggest issues is on the matter of sleep, or, in regards to my 2 teens, the deprivation of sleep. While I understand there are certain schedules that work better for busing, I do not understand why they have the group that will be the least likely to fall asleep at a time to get the recommended hours in, before their early wakeup call in order to get to their bus stop at 6:30am. In order for them to get their recommended 8.5 hours they would need to be asleep no later than 9:30pm. Good luck with that!
KIT Fx - Week 10: Sleep the daily recommended amount of time
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a website that provides good guidelines and other information on sleep
http://www.cdc.gov/features/sleep/
Insufficient sleep is associated with a number of chronic diseases and conditions—such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity, and depression—which threaten our nation’s health. Not getting enough sleep is associated with the onset of these diseases and also may complicate their management and outcome.
Sufficient sleep is increasingly being recognized as an essential aspect of chronic disease prevention and health promotion. How much sleep is enough? Sleep needs vary from person to person and change as people age. Consider these sleep guidelines for different age groups (and note that the total hours recommended for children 5 years of age and younger include naps).
Infants
• Birth–2 months need 10.5–18 hours
• 2–12 months need 14–15 hours
Toddlers/Children
• 12–18 months need 13–15 hours
• 18 months–3 years need 12–14 hours
• 3–5 years old need 11–13 hours
• 5–12 years old need 9–11 hours
Adolescents need at least 8.5–9.5 hours
Adults typically need 7–9 hours
The website also provides good tips in getting the sleep you need:
• Go to bed at the same time each night, and rise at the same time each morning.
• Sleep in a quiet, dark, and relaxing environment, which is neither too hot nor too cold.
• Make your bed comfortable and use it only for sleeping and not for other activities, such as reading, watching TV, or listening to music.
• Remove all TVs, computers, and other "gadgets" from the bedroom.
• Avoid physical activity within a few hours of bedtime.
• Avoid large meals before bedtime.
Getting enough sleep is not a new idea, so why are we finding it increasingly difficult to fit in the right amount of sleep time? Some reasons are that we live a too-busy lifestyle or we see “excess” sleep as laziness. Let’s take this time to incorporate this very important need into our daily routines. This girl welcomes that suggestion!
maylene
Thursday, March 4, 2010
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