In today’s blog post, Dr. Gokhale, a Heart Specialist in Hyderabad, talks about the importance of sleep for a child. It goes beyond saying that a good night’s sleep can brighten everyone’s day. However, not many know the importance of sleep for child development. Yes, you read that right.

Why is it important for a child to sleep?

• Sleep plays a very big role in proper growth of a child, and thus child sleep importance is something that everyone should educate themselves about, and apply to their children.
• During the day, the body uses muscles and other components in order to function. Children tend to play a lot, and this uses a lot of their limited energy reserves, which in turn causes fatigue and stress to the body.
• During sleep, the body recuperates by providing healing time without any disturbance.
• Sleep aids in cell repair, emotional well being, increasing immunity and a host of other benefits.
• Kids are involved in so much these days, from school to sports to homework to playing in the neighborhood.
• While most parents ensure that kids receive enough nutrition to keep them going, it is equally, if not more, important for the child to get enough sleep.

How much sleep do children need?

There are a few tips that parents can follow to ensure their child gets to sleep enough and not compromise.

• One thing is to watch out for food consumption before bedtime.
• Adequate time (about two hours) is to be given after dinner and before the child goes to bed, to ensure that the body has digested the food and does not waste precious sleep resources to aid digestion.
• Also, liquid intake is to be limited as children have small stomachs and tend to get up frequently during the night.
• The environment in which a child sleeps is also of great importance – the room should be dark and warm or cold, depending on the weather outside.
• There should be no sounds to disturb the child.
• Also, kids should not be encouraged to use bright screens before they sleep – like using phones or watching the TV.
• Instead, something that is soothing to the eyes like reading can be done to ensure that the child does not become hyper alert and interrupt his/her sleep hormone production.

Sleep is essential as it has direct impact on the overall mental and physical development of the child.

Know About Dr Gokhale