Sleep Children

A series of recent studies has given sleep scientists a new source of optimism about the future of sleep, and that source is children. One of the most difficult factors to overcome in our national (and international) struggle with sleep is the fact that people simply do not give the research enough credence. They may read it with interest and even be willing to try out getting a couple of extra hours of sleep to see whether it makes them feel better or work more efficiently, but when push comes to shove, sleep is still one of the very first things that people are willing to sacrifice in the face of social opportunities, work deadlines, and even a video game or really compelling novel. Continue reading →

Researchers at the University of Michigan have found that an innovative sleep education program targeting preschoolers extended the children’s nightly sleep by thirty minutes.

The study, which was recently published in the journal Sleep, was instituted through the Head Start program, and included a single 45-minute educational program aimed at parents and supplemented by two weeks of in-class programming aimed at children. The study, which involved exposing the kids to a program titled Sweet Dreamzzz, involved 152 children. The program’s success was measured through diaries that the parents were asked to keep, tracking their children’s sleep. Continue reading →