The science of sleep: Researchers reveal how to get kids to go to bed — and stay there

It is the question sleep-deprived parents everywhere find themselves Googling desperately in the wee hours: how do I make my child go to bed? Now a group of UK researchers have tried to defuse the dilemma with a new study that, for the first time, claims to have reached “expert consensus” on the best bedtime routine for young children. The report’s authors, led by University of Manchester’s George Kitsaras, said, despite growing recognition of the importance of bedtime routine on a child’s development and health there was a lack of consensus about what works. The UK Medical Research Council-funded study, which was published this week in PLOS One journal, crunched opinions from 59 experts — including doctors, psychologists, nurse, midwives and even dentists — on the best bedtime routine for children aged two to eight-years-old. The aim was not just to help children sleep but to balance a child’s health and sleep with parental wellbeing and the practicalities of life in a busy family home. What emerged was a broad consensus that an ideal bedtime routine should include the following: Ideally, the routine should start an hour before bedtime and be consistent, including at the weekend. The experts also noted the importance of putting children to bed early enough for them to get sufficient sleep. Natasha Duffin is a Perth-based occupational therapist specialising in sleep therapy who runs paediatric sleep consultancy, Sound Asleep Baby. She said the study’s conclusions were supported by previous research, which has linked a consistent bedtime routine with better cognitive outcomes for children. “I certainly agree with a calming wind-down aspect before bed,” she said. “Also the blue-light technology is a big one and that is pretty backed up by science in terms of the blue light affecting melatonin production. “Melatonin is kind of like the starting gun of a running race that sets your body up for sleep, so if you’re exposing them to (blue) light for that hour or two before bed it can make getting to sleep difficult.” She said, while the study looked at children two and older, a good bedtime routine could start from as early as 12-16 weeks and it was particularly important that young children were in bed for 11-12 hours a night. “From about then (12-16 weeks) they’ve got a circadian rhythm established,” she said. “Predictability with routine is really good for children to help the feel safe and secure knowing what comes next. So doing things in roughly the same order and the same time every night helps them prepare for sleep.” Mother of three — with a fourth on the way — Rose Ellis saw Ms Duffin to help daughters Indigo, Summer and Paislee sleep better. At the time it was not uncommon to wind up with three children in the bed at night. She said since implementing a bedtime routine that includes a shower, books and singing, all three were sleeping well and she and her husband James had their evenings back. “It’s a lot less stressful,” she said. “Before, James and I would argue who’s going to lie with them and we wouldn’t be eating dinner until 8.30 or 9 o’clock at night. “Now because of the routine it’s super easy, even if we’re not here because (they) know what to do.”