How to get a good night’s sleep

We spend a third of our lives doing it. It’s vital to our health and wellbeing. And yet we don’t always pay enough attention to why we need it! The answer, of course, is sleep.

“People go to huge amounts of time and expense to eat well and exercise regularly but without a good night’s sleep, all that effort will be in vain. Sleep doesn’t just make us feel better, it can improve our health by decreasing the risk of heart attacks, diabetes and strokes - and it helps us fight off minor ailments, deal better with depression and even tackle weight problems,” said Lisa Artis of The Sleep Council.

And it’s not just adults who need to become more ‘sleep aware’, so do children and teenagers.

“While it’s extremely important for parents to know how much sleep their child needs, we also need to teach youngsters about good sleep behaviour – and from an early age too,” said Lisa. “If a child isn’t getting enough sleep, then the parents probably aren’t either - causing increasing stress among the whole family.”

A decent night’s sleep will help children to do better at school, allow them to react more quickly to situations, have a more developed memory, learn more effectively and solve problems. Plus, it will make them less susceptible to colds and other minor ailments, less irritable and better behaved. Sleep deprivation causes increased hyperactivity and other behavioural problems, as well as damaging physical and mental development. Poor sleep habits from an early age can lead to long term sleep problems. Added Lisa: “An increasing body of evidence shows the damaging effect on children and teenagers who get less sleep than they need - from weight gain to depression, from poor performance and concentration to reduced creative ability and lower immunity to diseases. This comes at a time when the pressures of the modern world are definitely leading to decreased sleep times.”

Daytime tiredness in young children and students is a real issue and The Sleep Council’s Time to Learn survey in 2012 revealed that lack of sleep among primary school children was having a devastating effect in schools, with nine out of 10 teachers (92%) complaining that pupils were so tired they were unable to pay attention in class. Worryingly, more than a third (38%) of teachers said lack of sleep among youngsters is a daily problem for them.

“While we teach children about nutrition and ensure regular exercise is part of their weekly activities, the third critical ingredient of a healthy lifestyle – sleep – is barely touched upon. Youngsters need to know that a healthy lifestyle includes a good night’s sleep,” said Lisa.

“Lack of sleep is something of a national epidemic, so it is particularly important for parents to establish good sleep hygiene habits at an early age - not letting them stay up too late, sleep wherever they want and demand snacks and attention in the middle of the night.”

There are so many different factors which can affect children’s sleep so parents should check the obvious causes first such as room temperature, light, noise, hunger or thirst. Other influences are illness (actual or impending), changes or stress in the family, holidays and fear.

Here are The Sleep Council’s top tips for parents:

Establishing and sticking to a bedtime routine right from the start until early teens can go a long way to minimising later problems. This is normally along the lines of teatime, followed by quiet play, bath, story and then bed. Bedtime should be around the same time each evening (although on non-school nights, older children already established in a good sleep pattern may be allowed to stay up later).

Don’t expect children to go to sleep immediately – after all, most adults don’t – and they should be allowed to read or play quietly until they drop off. It’s still promoting a relaxing environment.

If your child can’t sleep, don’t be tempted to get them back out of bed - instead encourage them to be quiet and lie down.

Try not to get cross with your child if they’re refusing to go to sleep. This only aggravates the situation and doesn’t aid the relaxing atmosphere before bed.

Ensure the environment is right for sleep – it should be cool, quiet, dark and free from distraction. Ideally computers, gaming machines and TVs should be banned from the bedroom but if that’s unlikely then at least keep them away from the bed and try to limit the use of these devices in the hour just before bedtime!

It’s also extremely important to make sure the bed is comfortable and supportive for a growing child – many parents think nothing of spending a fortune on shoes for a child’s growing feet but scrimp on a mattress. Also make the bed a welcoming, positive place – never send kids to bed if they’re being naughty!

Keep regular bedtime hours. A good sleep routine will work wonders.

Know how much sleep your child needs. As a general rule of thumb, toddlers need around 12 hours of sleep a night; children aged four to six – 10.5-11.5 hours; six-12 years olds – 10 hours; and teenagers – around eight to nine hours.

Why choose childminding?

From August 2020, all three and four-year-olds and eligible two-year-olds in Scotland will be entitled to almost double the current funded childcare allowance - from 600 to 1140 hours per year. This is around 30 hours per week during term time.

As a parent or carer, you could use some or all of your hours with a childminder, as long as they are listed as an approved provider with their local authority.

Why choose childminding?

Childminding is consistently rated by the Care Inspectorate as being one of the highest quality forms of childcare in Scotland and follows the same learning and policy frameworks as nurseries (including Curriculum for Excellence). The low adult-to-child ratio enables the childminder to tailor their care to best suits the needs of the child and their family.

“Anna found nursery quite overwhelming and I decided that a childminder setting with smaller numbers of children would suit her better. It’s made a fantastic difference to her. She takes part in lots of real-life activities and learning experiences with her childminder and gets to spend time with other children of all different age groups. She is also delighted to be given some independence in making decisions around the activities that she does each day.” To find out more about funded hours and the many benefits of childminding, visit childminding.org/elc or call us on 01786 449063.

Your Childcare, Your Choice!

From August, all three and four year-olds and eligible two year-olds * are entitled to 1140 hours of funded Early Learning and Childcare.

As a parent, it’s your choice which provider(s) you choose to deliver this childcare for your family.

Why choose childminding? ✓ it has one of the highest quality ratings and the lowest adult to child ratios of all forms of childcare in Scotland ✓children can learn and play with other ages – providing opportunities to enhance early learning, confi dence and social development in a safe, nurturing, home-based environment Our children enjoy a variety of activities and interacting with other children, they are constantly learning new skills.

Did you know? It is also possible to use a mix of childcare providers to suit your family’s needs - such as spending part of the day with a childminder and part of it with a nursery*.

Call SCMA on 01786 449063 or visit childminding.org/elc

*Please contact your local authority to fi nd out what is available to you.

1140 hrs

Over half of parents feel lonely

New research has found that over half (56%) of parents with children under the age of five years experience loneliness at least some of the time.

The study by the charity, Coram Family and Childcare reveals that the issue affects significantly more women than men, with twice as many mothers as fathers saying they often feel left out; as well as younger parents, with nearly 37% of parents aged 18 to 24 often feeling a lack of companionship, compared to 21% of parents aged 25 to 34.

Loneliness is most prevalent around the birth of a baby, particularly if parents are unable to get out of the house easily and when the children are older but haven’t yet started school.

Focus groups conducted by Coram Family and Childcare concluded that parents felt the best way to combat loneliness and isolation was to meet other parents by participating in activities that their child would enjoy.