In the same way that there are healthy eating habits that affect children's health, there are also healthy eating habits that affect sleep. These are the most important.
Five essential habits that help children sleep more restfully
We get tired of informing, insisting as many times as necessary to give a voice to the experts, about childhood eating habits and how we now know the impact, positive or negative, they have on children's health. However, it seems that we leave other habits in the background that also have an enormous impact on the well-being of our little ones: sleeping habits.
We live in a country that tends to have lunches and dinners late, which lives for a good part of the year when the sun begins to set, very late compared to other areas of Europe. And on top of that, to make matters worse, during the cold season, our schedules are not much better either because we leave work late and the children's extracurricular schedules do not help either; especially, as they grow, since they usually start later each year. And what can we say about television and the schedule of the famous 'prime time'...
Whether for one reason or another or due to the accumulation of several, the point is that it is difficult for us to maintain healthy sleeping habits over time. To adults and, consequently, to children as well. It seems that putting them to bed at 9 at night is a kind of punishment, or at 10 in the summer, for example. And the same thing happens to us if we go to bed before 11:30 p.m. For many people, it seems like they are wasting part of their day.
But the truth is that this is not the case: science has shown how much the soil impacts our health since we are little. And that is why pediatricians insist so much on the hours a day that boys and girls should sleep depending on their age.
We have already talked to you about this in other pieces. In this, we are going to emphasize which small habits are the most effective when it comes to maintaining a healthy sleep routine in childhood.
Five essential habits
There are many more habits you can try to continue promoting a quality sleep routine in your sons and daughters, but these five are, without a doubt, the basis of said routine. Those that are easier to apply and those that are most effective according to experts.
We delve into it below:
Schedule. Irregular routine is the worst enemy of sleep in children. If you want your sons and daughters to have acquired healthy habits from a young age regarding rest as babies, try to prioritize their sleep routine, and this involves following a similar schedule each day. A schedule that is appropriate to their age, based on what experts recommend. This includes dinner time, of course. And even the place, although it is more difficult, should always be the same (if they dine out from home, the sleeping routine is broken). With very specific exceptions, do not skip it, especially if it is a newborn since the little one will notice it a lot (and so will you).
Routine. Just as repeating the schedule is key, so is what steps you take before putting the little ones to bed at home. When they are babies, bathing helps a lot so that they quickly learn what phase of the day they are entering. There is no need to be rigid anyway; Maybe another routine works better for you, but try to keep it the same every day. As they grow, for example, it helps a lot to spend a little time reading or having a small family chat with the dim light, already in bed, where they tell you about some concern or the best and worst of the day... It's a matter of finding that pre-sleep relaxation routine that works best for you at home. There is not just one option.
The awakening. It seems like a factor that does not enter into the equation of healthy sleep, but waking up at the same time slot on a regular basis helps a lot to establish good sleep habits. This, in children, usually happens naturally if they go to bed at a time that is advisable for their age because as soon as they sleep their hours, the ones their body needs - experts use forks depending on their age - they will wake up. On the other hand, if one day they wake up at 8 and another at 11, the chances that their sleep routine is irregular and unhealthy for them are much higher. Try not to vary the range of times you get up and go to bed by more than an hour.
Light and sound. In this pre-sleep routine, it is key for it to work to provide an environment conducive to relaxation and sleep induction. For this reason, for example, it is advisable to have dinner without television - it is also advisable to strengthen the family bond, among other reasons. And in the same way as sound, light is also key: in this sense, avoiding very bright environments helps the little ones a lot. Indirect lights in the room are of great help in this regard.
Restrictions. In the fifth and last habit, we resort to a kind of “bag of restrictions”. Because? Because there are certain things that experts advise against consuming during the sleep routine in childhood. One of them is sugar; no sweets like chocolate or exciting soft drinks. Another is very intense physical activity since it accelerates the brain and the body needs a prior period of relaxation. Yes to the park and extracurricular sports, but not at times close to bedtime. And finally, no to screens.Not just television, although this is the one most often consumed before going to sleep. The reason is what we have developed in the previous point: light and noise stimulate, generating a state of excitement that is contrary to what a boy or girl needs to fall asleep.
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