Kid's Quality Sleep. What It Actually Is?
"For you to sleep well at night, the aesthetic, the quality, has to be carried all the way through." Steve Jobs
The fact is that all children sleeps. The cases of insomnia for several or more days are extremely rare for our little friends. So finally they are sleeping lots of hours and it seems enough until we notice.. wait... there is something wrong. Why my kid is so irritable in the mornings? Why he is so active in the evening when is time to go to bed? Why he is so inattentive to what I am saying? Why he doesn't remember the things that maybe he should?... Those and other questions are growing as uncomfortable tension after your communication with the little wonder of your life. And if you are tired and even holding a stress from outside, then the sparkles of conflict can become a natural part of your life. But now you are reading this topic. And the answer to question "Is my kid's sleep quality enough?" can save you, your relationships and even your carrier. You are welcome.
REM & NREM Advantages
To understand the problem better we must go into sleep biology labyrinth a little more deeper. This is the same as you should know the main construction guidelines of a house to evaluate it's usability and comfort. So there are two main REM and NREM categories of sleep. Both are happening in the sequence one after another during all night.
NREM is so called "non paid eye movement" and it's all about physical body development. It is intense in the means of muscle tone. To recognise that your kid is in NREM you should notice his muscular activity. It is when your kid is titling, kicking, fidgeting and even crawling in the sleep. This is the list of benefits which comes while you baby is in NREM:
- Growth hormone is released.
- Body tissues are repaired and generated.
- Bones and muscle are built.
- Immune system is increased.
Interesting fact! Premature infant sleep is in 75% REM and for adults this number decreases to only 20%.
During REM (called "rapid eye movement" stage) your lovely child is almost paralized from foots until the neck. But don't be mistaken by this view, because the brain activity in REM is far more bigger than it is in non-sleep time or in NREM. So this stage is dedicated to mental development. The brain activity is so largely increased, that it pushes all body systems hard: stomach acid secretion increases more than 20 times, sweat is coming more, heart is pounding, psychical health issues such as asthma, angina are becoming worse. And waking up from nightmare dream is also in REM stage. But in return this is the list about with benefits of REM for your little friend:
- New information is processed.
- Long-term memory absorbs new information.
- Developed problem-solving ability.
- Increased creativity.
- Improving learning and performance ability.
- Nice dreams.
The Key To Child's Deep Sleep Is "Delta Sleep"
Interesting fact! 37% of 5-13 years kids do not get enough sleep (by US National Library of Medicine). 27% of those kids have a bedtime resistance problem.
NREM has 4 stages in total. The 3th-4th stages are named "Delta Sleep", where the peak of growth hormones appears and this time is the deepest sleep during all night. It means, that the quality of all night sleep can be evaluated by count and longevity of deep sleep or "Delta sleep" periods. So the kids that get not enough sleep, they just don't get enough "Delta sleep" which occurs in NREM. The periods of this quality sleep occurring during all night and more later p.m. hours are the shorter those periods occur. In fact 2 most longer periods occurs in 8:00 pm to 12:00 pm time span. Thus the main cure for kid sleep is not to sleep more, but to go to bed more early!
In addition this so needed sleep of growth is very sensitive to the events of a day and demand of it can vary. This is the list of factors that can have influence:
- Doing more metabolism increasing activities like training during day time. Then your kid needs longer "Delta Sleep" periods.
- Did he or she started new lessons? Unusual bigger activity of brain during the day can naturally lessen longevity of deep sleep periods.
- Oxygen consumption of body also have influence on such periods demand.
- Intense psychological events also slightly interacts with "Delta Sleep".
Delta Sleep And Home Environment Connection
The conclusion is that early bedtime is essential for your little wonder's health, grown-up and good mood. The answer for question "haw to do that?" is perfect bedtime routine. The more stability, harmony and comfort routine will have, the more chances for success. Constant, communicative efforts will help you to make "8:00 pm bedtime" as preference for your child. That's why kids bedroom furniture, decorations, toys with noise and light control are playing major roles in getting quality sleep. In the end all talks, views, colours and actions in the time of routine will be in-prints in your kids head as signs to get asleep.
