Pediatricians Sound The Alarm: Pandemic Deprived Children Of Normal Sleep

Pediatricians sound the alarm: pandemic deprived children of normal sleep

Doctors at the Millpond Clinic in London said that the number of visits for sleep disorders in children aged 5 to 13 increased by a third compared to last year. The long quarantine is to blame: children are used to staying up late, sleeping long and spending too much time on the Internet.

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Sleep disorder in children is exacerbated by the general anxiety that inevitably affects them, and the lack of a regimen. That is why doctors recommended during self-isolation to go to bed and wake up at the same time.

“We are seeing a surge in anxiety-related sleep disorders in children. It was very difficult for young children, whom self-isolation deprived of games and walks with peers. As for adolescents, it is very difficult for parents to get them to go to bed on time and wake them up in the morning when there is no need to go to school, "The Guardian quotes Millpond clinic founder Mandy Gurney.

A survey of 2,700 parents by The Sleep Charity in April found that the coronavirus pandemic could have a long-term negative impact on children's sleep. At least 70% of children under 16 went to bed later than usual, and about 57% got up late. 74% of the respondents answered that their children used gadgets more often during self-isolation.

“Every year after the summer holidays, we see the same picture: schoolchildren, who are used to staying up late and getting up late, experience great stress when they have to follow the regime again. After the pandemic, this stress will increase many times over, which we warned about at the very beginning of the lockdown. In self-isolation, it is necessary to adhere to a normal daily routine and not interrupt the rhythms of the usual,”said Michael Farquhar, specialist in sleep disorders in children at Evelina London Children's Hospital.

The Sleep Charity experts have developed several recommendations that are relevant for parents in all countries where restrictions were imposed in connection with the coronavirus pandemic:

Try to stay asleep. If the time you and your family members go to bed has changed a lot, start gradually shifting it by 10-15 minutes every two to three days;

• Agree that all family members stop using gadgets and watching TV an hour before going to bed. You can all play a board game together, assemble a puzzle or draw, this relaxes both adults and children;
• Try to leave the house in daylight for at least half an hour daily to normalize your biological clock;
• Encourage children to exercise, preferably outdoors;
• Do not punish children by sending them to the bedroom during the day, do not give them toys or school supplies in bed. In general, try to use sleeping rooms only for sleeping.