Establish regular sleep and ensure a comfortable sleep environment and overall well-being. It involves practising regular sleep schedules, creating a cosy sleep environment, and adopting relaxing bedtime routines.
If you are a parent, you will most likely know the struggle of putting a child to sleep and ensuring they maintain a proper bedtime routine. It is important for children to sleep at a particular time every night, because not only does it encourage them to follow a healthy lifestyle, it is also important for their overall well-being and their mental, emotional and physical development. According to nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar, sleep is the most important aspect of human health, and even if you are not able to prioritise it for all seven days of the week, make sure you and your family are getting quality sleep for at least five days of the week.
Diwekar took to Instagram to stress on the importance of good sleep for children. She said that when a person sleeps, their brain is able to process and decide what kind of memory to keep and what can be deleted. Sleep is also good for children, as it can regulate their hormones. With proper sleep, most children are able to tackle issues like anxiety and depression, especially teenagers who are dealing with stress on a regular basis. Not to mention, during the sleeping hours, the body is able to strengthen the immune system and improve the immune response to infections and illnesses.
According to the expert, parents of sleep-deprived children may notice that they are getting sick too often, or have become moody, cranky and irritable. The child definitely needs to develop a good sleep hygiene. "...essentially, habits that lead to good sleep, and the most important of those habits is to have a fixed time to go to sleep and wake up on most days of the week, if not all," said Diwekar.
The nutritionist said between 8 pm and 9.30 pm is an ideal time to go to bed, as it allows for optimum sleep. Teenagers may extend it to 10.30 pm, but not beyond that.
Some important points to remember:
According to Diwekar, a sleep-deprived child is never optimally healthy, and is at a risk of developing non-communicable diseases like high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, fatty liver, etc.
