Are your children getting enough sleep? CDC has some new statistics
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed data from the 2015 national and state Youth Risk Behavior Surveys and looked at how much sleep students were getting. What they found: ■ 57.8 percent of middle-schoolers are not getting enough sleep on school nights
■ 72.7 percent of highschoolers are not getting enough sleep on school nights
Why is sleep important? The CDC points to the increased risk of these diseases: ■ obesity ■ diabetes ■ injuries ■ mental health ■ attention and behavior How much sleep to kids need? The American Academy of Sleep Medicine offers this guideline:
■ Infants 4 months to 12 months old: 12 to 16 hours (including naps)
■ Children 1 to 2 years old: 11 to 14 hours (including naps)
■ Children 3 to 5 years old: 10 to 13 hours (including naps)
■ Children 6 to 12 years old: 9 to 12 hours
■ Teens 13 to 18 years old: 8 to 10 hours ■ Adults: 7 hours or more The academy also has a really cool sleep calculator. You put in your age and the time you get up and it tells you when you have to go to sleep. It told me I need to go to sleep before 10 (and then I laughed). My 14-year-old needs to go to bed between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m., my 17-year-old needs to be asleep between 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. And my poor husband should be asleep by 9 p.m.
The CDC recommends these sleep tips:
■ Be consistent. Go to bed at the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning, including on the weekends
■ Make sure your bedroom is quiet, dark, relaxing, and at a comfortable temperature
■ Remove electronic devices, such as TVs, computers, and smart phones, from the bedroom
■ Avoid large meals, caffeine, and alcohol before bedtime
■ Get some exercise. Being physically active during the day can help you fall asleep more easily at night.