Naps, what is worth knowing about them?

Snoozes, what you should know about them

In addition to eating and drinking, sleep is a key need for your little one.
Children who enjoy an afternoon nap have a faster rate of growth and development compared to those who forgo it. In general, a toddler needs about twelve hours of sleep each day. By the age of four, fifty percent of children have a regular afternoon nap. By the age of five, this habit begins to disappear, as they find playing more interesting than sleeping.

Daytime sleep promotes brain development

A one-hour afternoon nap increases brain activity. It helps shape memory and the learning process. After an afternoon nap, a child’s visual and spatial abilities increase. Dr. Kim West, author of “Gentle Proven Solutions to Help Your Child Sleep Well and Wake Up Happy,” found that while sleeping, a toddler can record everything he or she has previously learned. This makes it easier to retrieve those memories when they wake up.

It accelerates body growth

Dr. Kim West also found that a child’s growth and development can be optimized if they are accustomed to an afternoon nap and a good night’s sleep. Growth hormone is released during sleep.

Lack of sleep has been linked to health problems. A study by Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine found that children who don’t sleep well at night are more likely to be obese.

Stability of emotional state

Children who have a regular afternoon nap have a more stable emotional state. They are calm and have the ability to solve problems easily.

Rest for the whole body

The
afternoon nap brings the child’s organs into a resting phase after a day full of activity.

A busy day and busy schedule can tire out the whole family. Whether we’re in the middle of running errands or it’s a matter of convenience, skipping naps and choosing an earlier bedtime may be tempting, but such an idea has more consequences than just making your child tired and upset.

When we sleep, we process what happened during the day and learn from those events, forming new neuronal connections. During sleep, our memories consolidate and merge with existing memories, moving from short-term memory to long-term memory. This process is called memory consolidation and involves structural and chemical changes in brain cells and networks. We need lasting memories to develop the cognitive abilities that enable us to reason logically, solve problems, plan, communicate and learn, and this makes up our IQ .

Preparing for naps

Some children have difficulty calming down during the day because they are very sensitive to environmental stimuli. It is a myth that a child is able to learn to sleep despite the normal noises and sounds coming from various rooms in the house during the day.

Are you able to instantly turn off, ignore everything you hear and fall asleep? Perhaps many children have this ability, but certainly not all. Those that can’t do it should fall asleep in a dark, quiet room.

If your child is still shying away from daytime sleep, think about what changes you can make to his room and schedule that will help him fall asleep for a nap:

• Shade the room: install blinds, hang curtains or blinds and move the crib to a place where the sun doesn’t reach.
• Make sure the house is quiet: some babies sleep a very light and alert sleep. You can turn the fan on the lowest speed to drown out some noises, such as the ringing of the phone, the barking of the dog, the sound of horns coming from the street, etc.
• Slow the pace: don’t put the baby in the crib at the same time every day to the minute. Establish some rituals before going to bed, for example, feeding, changing, reading a story, rocking the baby for a few minutes, and then putting him back in the crib while he is still awake, so that he will accept the last element as part of the established ritual before going to sleep.
• Let the baby develop his own pattern: nap time is sacred – try to make sure there is no deviation from it. When the child is tired, he should go to bed. While two naps a day do not affect nighttime sleep, plan the rest of the day taking into account the needs of the toddler, not the other way around.

Remember that this is a transitional phase in your child’s life. Over the course of the year, nap times will shift and become shorter. Establishing a certain pattern related to daytime sleep will have an impact on how your toddler will “lie down” in the second and third years of life.

In
a study published in the Oxford Academia
journal, Sleep, researchers found that not getting enough quality sleep has a direct impact on academic performance. Respecting our children’s sleep needs, regardless of our schedules and busy schedules, is a long-term investment in their development.

The author of our advice for moms is midwife Emilia Adamczyk of emilymed.co.uk, who is an expert in caring for toddlers and helping their moms. Sleepee co-creates its products in collaboration with Emilia to make them as safe, useful and quality as possible. Beautiful and durable they are by the way .

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