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Strict bedtimes may fend off depression in kids
Teens who stay up past midnight at higher risk for serious mental issues
Exposure at night to bright lights from a computer or television can interfere with sleep, experts say.
Twelve-year-old Nicholas Ho was so exhausted each morning, he could barely drag himself out of bed in time for school.
Concerned that something might be seriously wrong with his son, Chi Ho took Nicholas to a sleep specialist. But after a night in the sleep lab, doctors reassured the Tampa, Fla., family that Nicholas was perfectly normal. The fix was simple: He just needed to learn the rules of good sleep.
Now, his 10:30 p.m. bedtime is non-negotiable. The computer must be turned off by 9 p.m., and electronic devices are banned from Nicholas’ room. He spends an hour each night cooling down.
"I pet my dogs and watch some cartoons," Nicholas says.
His dad says Nicholas is a sunnier kid now that he's getting a good night's sleep. “He’s got more energy now and is less anxious.”
New research may explain why. Earlier bedtimes make for happier, less depressed kids, according to a new study in the journal Sleep.
Adolescents and teens with strict bedtimes of 10 p.m. or earlier were less likely to be depressed and to have suicidal thoughts than their classmates whose parents allowed them to stay up till midnight or even later, researchers at Columbia University found.
Scientists have long known that there was a link between depression and poor sleep, Gangwisch says. But there has always been a question as to whether the depression caused insomnia or whether poor sleep led to depression. The fact that parent-enforced bedtimes play such a significant role suggests lack of sleep may actually be a cause, not just an effect of depression.
Read more here
Teens who stay up past midnight at higher risk for serious mental issues
Exposure at night to bright lights from a computer or television can interfere with sleep, experts say.
Twelve-year-old Nicholas Ho was so exhausted each morning, he could barely drag himself out of bed in time for school.
Concerned that something might be seriously wrong with his son, Chi Ho took Nicholas to a sleep specialist. But after a night in the sleep lab, doctors reassured the Tampa, Fla., family that Nicholas was perfectly normal. The fix was simple: He just needed to learn the rules of good sleep.
Now, his 10:30 p.m. bedtime is non-negotiable. The computer must be turned off by 9 p.m., and electronic devices are banned from Nicholas’ room. He spends an hour each night cooling down.
"I pet my dogs and watch some cartoons," Nicholas says.
His dad says Nicholas is a sunnier kid now that he's getting a good night's sleep. “He’s got more energy now and is less anxious.”
New research may explain why. Earlier bedtimes make for happier, less depressed kids, according to a new study in the journal Sleep.
Adolescents and teens with strict bedtimes of 10 p.m. or earlier were less likely to be depressed and to have suicidal thoughts than their classmates whose parents allowed them to stay up till midnight or even later, researchers at Columbia University found.
Scientists have long known that there was a link between depression and poor sleep, Gangwisch says. But there has always been a question as to whether the depression caused insomnia or whether poor sleep led to depression. The fact that parent-enforced bedtimes play such a significant role suggests lack of sleep may actually be a cause, not just an effect of depression.
Read more here
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