This is scary stuff . . .
Recent reports indicate that less than fifty percent of grade school and high school children in the US are getting enough sleep during the week. For children between the ages of 6 and 17 that means a solid nine hours of sack time each night. This disturbing report has been released by the American Academy of Pediatrics and was the highlight of their New Orleans Annual Conference last month. Their study proposes that children who get the required nine hours of sleep each school night show a much more positive attitude towards learning and social interaction, which, the study concludes, are two of the most important aspects of a flourishing childhood — which pediatricians now recognize as a measurable criterion for social and behavioral well-being.
The study says that parents are failing in their duty to impose reasonable curfews on their children. Researchers suggest that children under the age of twelve should be in bed no later than 8:30, and teenagers should be in their bedrooms preparing for bed no later than 10 on school nights.
Sugary snacks and caffeinated drinks should not be available to children on a school night after 6 in the evening, the report goes on to say.