Nurse practitioner explains how much sleep kids need and how to help them fall asleep

GREER, SC (WSPA) - Putting children to bed at night can be one of the biggest challenges that parents face.   

Sandra Olson, a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner with Bon Secours Primary Care in Greer, said, "Getting a goodnight's sleep for all ages, promotes better health and a better immune system, which as parents, that's what we want."  Olson continued, "If [children] are getting adequate sleep, they do better in school, they have better behavior, better attention, better focus." 

Olson says infants need 12 to 16 hours of sleep.  She says children ages one to five need 10 to 14 hours of sleep and that these time recommendations include naptime.   As children age, they need less sleep and often stop napping.  Olson said, "School agers six to 12 need about 9 to 12 hours of sleep.  By the time they're a teenager, they need 8 to 10 hours." 

Olson said one of the most important things parents can do is keep their kids on a consistent schedule and establish a bedtime routine.   She gave recommendations for how parents can help their children wind down.  "Start working on things like warm baths, reading to children, and dimming the lights." Likewise, she suggested what children could listen to, to help them relax.  "Soft music or nature sounds kind of get the body calmed down in order to establish rest."   

Any kind of screens, like televisions, phones, and iPads should not be in the bedroom, according to Olson, and she had suggestions for helping teens wind down before bed.  "For older kids, I like to tell them, especially teenagers, to journal: write down the negative things that happen during the day, maybe their worries."  Olson said then they should "end their journal note with something that's inspiring, something that's a positive, on an upbeat note prior to going to bed." 

For more information on sleep recommendations for children and teens, visit: https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/Pages/American-Academy-of-Pediatrics-Supports-Childhood-Sleep-Guidelines.aspx.  

To learn more about staying healthy, tune in to hear the experts at Bon Secours this Saturday, on 106.3 WORD radio.  

To submit a question to the Ask the Expert series, visit: https://www.wspa.com/ask-the-expert