Research has for many years associated the lack of sleep to poor performance at work, school, and people’s health. Now, the correlation between some illnesses and lack of sleep has been more troubling for some people, considering the fact that many Americans are sleeping less than ever before.
School age children need a minimum of 9 hours of sleep per night, and with the increasing extra curricular activities, homework, and computer games they are involved in, they are not getting enough sleep.
Women’s number one sleep problem is insomnia. Juggling work, home and children, one has to wonder if they ever get 8 hours of sleep per night. Sleep deprivation and low levels of melatonin have been associated with an increase risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Melatonin, a natural hormone made by our bodies is inactive during the day, but it’s active when the sun goes down.
So, how many hours of sleep do you really need to get? Here is the recommended sleep list by the National Sleep foundation.
1.Adults 65 and over, 7-8 hours
2. Adults 24-64 years old, 7-9 hours
3.Young Adults, 18-25 years old, 7-9 hours
4. Teenagers 14-17 years old, 8-10 hours
5. School Age Children 6-13 years old, 9-11 hours
6.Preschool children 3-5 years old, 10-13 hours
7. Toddlers 1-2 years old,11-14 hours
8. Infants 4-11 months old, 12-15 hours
9. Newborns 0-3 months old, 14-17 hours
Middle schoolers and high schoolers across the country get up very early to get to school on time. The chances they are not getting enough sleep are pretty likely. Avoiding caffeinated drinks and sugar rich beverages late in the afternoon should be avoided. Turn off the TV, and video games console; they will complain, but their sleep is more important. At this age in their lives, sleep is not priority number one, or two , or three. It is your responsibility to at least turn off their devices, and tell them to go to sleep.
