Sleep is an important component of maintaining a healthy lifestyle in children. Children who maintain recommended levels of sleep across the week, including weekends and holidays, have the most healthy and consistent levels of physical activity, according to new research.
The results, published in Preventive Medicine, also found that maintaining healthy sleep habits enabled children to engage in higher intensity activity throughout the week which also helped them fall asleep quicker. The National Sleep Foundation recommends children partake in regular physical activity to improve sleep quantity and quality.
In the current study, researchers collected sleep, BMI, and physical activity information from 1001 children, aged 10 to 12 years.
The results showed that, on weekdays, children who slept 9 hours or less were not as active and were more often overweight/obese compared to children who attained more than 9 hours of sleep. Additionally, children who maintained recommended sleep (more than 9 hours) on the weekends as well, had higher physical activity levels.
Children who engaged in weekend-catchup-sleep were even less active on the weekends. Children often tend to sleep longer on the weekends and holidays to compensate for sleep loss during weekdays. However, short sleep durations are often associated with higher BMI and lower levels of physical activity.
Parents and caregivers should make a sustained effort to enforce a regular bedtime throughout weekdays, weekends, and holidays. Irregular sleep schedules among school-aged children can have a variety of repercussions, such as increased daytime sleepiness, academic difficulties, moodiness, and behavioral problems.
So, while the weekends and holidays are a time for enjoyment and family time, be sure your child is still getting a good night’s sleep.
Bron: http://neuronetlearning.com/blog/maintaining-sleep-habits-during-the-holidays-impacts-childrens-physical-activity-levels/
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