Puberty brings a ton of changes to a young person’s life,
but now we have evidence
that the changes children experience in
their sleep between the ages of 11 and 12 can happen sooner than the usual physical changes in adolescence. In a study released the first week of
December in the journal Sleep,
researchers reported that:
- As they approach puberty, kids’ ability to fall
asleep was delayed by 50 minutes,
and total sleep times were reduced by 37
minutes.
- Girls slept better than boys.
- Aside from the biological changes happening that
can affect sleep, psychological issues
related to school demands, social activities, and technological distractions
can lead to the development of bad sleep
habits.
I’ve written about the sleep habits of adolescents numerous times. Parents are often confused by a teenager’s odd sleep habits, as most teens prefer to go to bed late, and wake up late (despite the morning school bell).
Everyone should know that this change in
sleep times is based on biological changes, not simply that they want to stay
up late and sleep late. Unfortunately, the world doesn’t revolve around a
child’s maturing transitional phases, leading many youths to struggle with
getting up in the morning, or going to bed at a “reasonable” hour.
The authors of this latest study provide a new opportunity
to look at the sleep habits of young adolescents and preteens. Having a deeper
understanding of the interrelationships between sleep and puberty may provide
new insights into where our adolescents can be vulnerable for both behavioral and emotional health problems.
Indeed, the more we know about a young person’s developing
sleep habits, the better we can support optimal habits for a lifetime of good
nights.
So the best you can do as a parent living with a night owl is to respect their current biological sleep needs as much as possible and instill as many good sleep habits in them as possible. They may want to go to bed late, but that doesn’t mean they should continue to hoot with the owls after midnight, only to be in a fog all morning long the next day.
I know, finding that perfect balance
between letting them do what they want and forcing bedtime rules is tough. But
the sooner they establish healthy habits, the sooner you’ll reclaim your sanity
through those tough teenage years.
My recommendations:
- Educate them on their body’s changing needs for
sleep.
- Allow them to sleep in on the weekends, but only
about 1-2 hours later than normal. Sleeping all day is not going to help them; it
will actually make them feel more exhausted.
- Have them go outside and get DIRECT SUNLIGHT in
the morning; this will help re-set their biological clock, and make it easier
to go to bed earlier.
- Stay away from products with melatonin; many of
these can have doses that may be too large, and we do not understand how they
may affect an adolescent’s growing body and brain.
- Encourage them to get up and get out - daily
exercise will also help re-set their biological clock. Sitting in front of the
TV or computer will only make matters worse.
Sweet Dreams,
The Sleep Doctor™
www.thesleepdoctor.com
Click here to see Dr. Breus's list of recommended sleep products. Click here to order his book, Beauty Sleep, on Amazon or Kindle.
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