Sleep is often discussed as a key factor in childhood development, and it makes sense that children need enough sleep to be ready to learn. It turns out we don’t have a lot of research that tells us how much sleep kids really need.
A new study reports that most sleep guidelines acknowledge there is a lack of solid evidence on how much children should sleep at night. Researchers also found that for the last hundred years experts have worried the increasingly rapid pace of modern life has cut into children’s sleep.
A lack of empirical evidence for sleep recommendations was universally acknowledged. Inadequate sleep was seen as a consequence of “modern life,” associated with technologies of the time. No matter how much sleep children are getting, it has always been assumed that they need more.
– “Never Enough Sleep: A Brief History of Sleep Recommendations for Children.” Pediatrics. 2/13/12. Read the abstract here.
The study also found that children have consistently slept less than recommended. The gap between recommended levels of sleep and actual sleep has remained roughly the same, “consistently about 37 minutes less than recommended sleep,” the study said.
Parents shouldn’t assume their kids are getting enough sleep, however, one of the study’s researchers said in an article on MSNBC.com.
“This is not to say that kids don't, in fact, need more sleep, just that the evidence is not out there," said Timothy Olds, a professor of health sciences at the University of South Australia, who also worked on the study. Sleep recommendations may reflect ingrained biases -- that kids are sleep-deprived or the world is going too fast -- more than good science, he said.
– “Kids don't get enough sleep (and neither did their grandparents).” 2/13/12.
Analysis of President Obama’s Budget: Check out analyses of the early education components of President Barack Obama’s fiscal 2013 budget, which was released yesterday.
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“Key Questions about Early Ed in Obama's FY13 Budget.” Early Ed Watch. 2/14/12.