Kids Snooze Longer with Benefits of Educational Sleep Programs

Regular rest is particularly important to help young minds learn and grow. And helping children realize the importance of an adequate night's sleep may also help parents switch off the lights a bit earlier than before. 

A recent study, published in the journal SLEEP, shows how preschoolers benefit from educational sleep programs. Study authors from the University of Michigan Sleep Disorders Center and Departments of Neurology and Pediatrics found that children who participated in a sleep education program gained an average of 30 more minutes of sleep per night.

During the study, researchers followed-up with the 152 preschool children and their families who took part in the sleep program. Researchers were happy to discover the additional 30 minute increase in sleep duration among the children.The sleep program included a one-time, 45-minute educational program for parents and a two-week classroom sleep education for preschoolers. 

"We know that an increase in sleep duration of that magnitude is associated with better function for kids during the day," said lead author Katherine (Wilson) DeRue, M.D., M.S., who conducted the study while a postgraduate fellow at the University of Michigan Sleep Disorders Center and Departments of Neurology and Pediatrics, in a news release. "Parents often underestimate how much sleep their kids require, so an educational program like this, directed at parents when they have more control over their kids' sleep schedules, can have great impact."

Yet it may not have been this educational program, alone, that resulted in a better night's rest for many of the children. Researchers also found that parental awareness and knowledge of good sleep behaviors also improved following program participation. However, the same effect was not sustained when participants were retested a month later.

"So we found that a two-week program of daily exposure to sleep education in the preschool classroom, along with an initial presentation for parents, can be an effective strategy," said Ronald D. Chervin, M.D., M.S., the study's senior author, director of the U-M Sleep Disorders Center, and a volunteer on Sweet Dreamzzz's Advisory Board, in the news release. "But repeated exposure or reminders about the sleep information may be necessary to maintain the effects for kids and especially parents over time."