調(diào)整孩子上學(xué)的睡眠時間表

調(diào)整孩子上學(xué)的睡眠時間表

Attention, parents: It’s 8 p.m. Do you know where your children are? If they’re not in bed, you may be overlooking one of the most important things you can do to prepare your kids for school.

家長們請注意:現(xiàn)在是晚上8點(diǎn)。你知道你的孩子在哪里嗎?如果他們不在床上，你可能忽略了你能為孩子上學(xué)做的最重要的事情之一。

In the summer, bedtimes can become more fluid, with youngsters staying up later and later. But before school starts, it’s important to establish a bedtime routine that will ensure they get proper rest to prepare them for busy days.

在夏天，孩子們的就寢時間會變得越來越不固定，他們睡得越來越晚。但是在開學(xué)之前，制定一個睡覺時間是很重要的，這將確保他們得到適當(dāng)?shù)男菹?，為他們忙碌的日子做?zhǔn)備。

Researchers have found that kids need more sleep than adults — lots more — to support their growth and development. The American Academy of Sleep Medicinerecommends that preschoolers get 10 to 13 hours of sleep a day, grade-schoolers get nine to 12 hours and teens sleep eight to 10 hours.

研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)，孩子比成年人需要更多的睡眠——多得多——來確保他們的成長和發(fā)展。美國睡眠醫(yī)學(xué)會建議，學(xué)齡前兒童每天的睡眠時間為10至13小時，小學(xué)生為9至12小時，青少年為8至10小時。

Kids who don’t get enough sleep — even an hour or so less than recommended — may have trouble paying attention, sitting still or keeping their emotions in check at school, says sleep psychologist Lisa J. Meltzer, an associate professor of pediatrics atNational Jewish Health in Denver.

丹佛市國家猶太健康中心，兒科副教授、睡眠心理學(xué)家麗莎·J·梅爾策表示，睡眠不足的孩子——即使比建議的睡眠時間少一個小時左右——在學(xué)校可能難以集中注意力、保持安靜或控制自己的情緒。

“Sleep is just as critical as diet and exercise,” says Meltzer. “We need to make sleep a priority, and often it’s not.”

“睡眠和飲食、鍛煉一樣重要，”梅爾策說。“我們需要把睡眠放在首位，但往往不是。”

“Twenty years ago, people went to bed earlier,” says Marc Weissbluth, professor emeritus of clinical pediatrics at Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago. Yesteryear’s children also spent more time napping.

芝加哥西北大學(xué)范伯格醫(yī)學(xué)院臨床兒科榮譽(yù)退休教授Marc Weissbluth說:“20年前，人們睡得很早。”去年的孩子們也花了更多的時間午睡。

There are many reasons for this, including naps cut short in day care and working parents who postpone bedtime to spend time with their children, says Weissbluth, author of Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. Another culprit: Many parents are sleep-deprived themselves — getting by on six or seven hours a night — and don’t recognize the condition in their children. Research shows that regular sleep deprivation has serious — and lasting — side effects for kids, including behavioral problems, weight gain, hypertension, headaches and depression.

《健康的睡眠習(xí)慣》一書的作者韋斯布魯斯說，造成這一現(xiàn)象的原因有很多，包括日托時間縮短了午睡時間，以及為了陪伴孩子而推遲就寢時間的在職父母。另一個罪魁禍?zhǔn)资?許多家長自己也缺乏睡眠——每晚只睡6到7個小時——他們沒有意識到自己孩子的睡眠狀況。研究表明，經(jīng)常性的睡眠不足會對孩子產(chǎn)生嚴(yán)重而持久的副作用，包括行為問題、體重增加、高血壓、頭痛和抑郁癥。

Kids need to wind down before they sleep, so it’s important to establish a sleep ritual. “Our technology has on/off switches, but our brains have dimmer switches. So, it takes quite a while for our brains to shut down at night,” Meltzer says.

孩子們需要在睡覺前放松下來，所以建立一個睡眠習(xí)慣是很重要的。“我們的設(shè)備有開/關(guān)鍵，但我們的大腦有更暗的開關(guān)。因此，我們的大腦在晚上需要相當(dāng)長的時間才能關(guān)閉，“Meltzer說。

Be aware that sleep habits shift during puberty, so it’s natural for teens to stay up later. A short after-school nap can help teens work more efficiently, according to the National Sleep Foundation. Also, they should steer clear of caffeine-infused drinks late in the day.

注意睡眠習(xí)慣在青春期會發(fā)生變化，所以青少年熬夜是很自然的。美國國家睡眠基金會表示，放學(xué)后小睡片刻可以幫助青少年更有效地工作。此外，他們應(yīng)該避免在一天的晚些時候喝含有咖啡因的飲料。