Is it true that children grow while they sleep?
Children should rest well at night. Until they are at least three years old, it is usually recommended that the baby sleep an average of ten hours since there are several studies that over the years have shown the benefits of sleep for the baby and its main relationship with growth hormone.
Is it true that children grow while they sleep?
In the old days, children were convinced to go to bed by telling them that it is night when you grow up and it is TRUE!
Just look back to find many studies that have analyzed how babies grow while they sleep since sleep stimulates the growth hormone, but the most recent of all (dated January 2021) was carried out by Norman Wilsman from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine in Madison and published in the Journal of Pediatric Orthopedics has gone further and has even analyzed which position makes the baby's bones develop the most while they sleep.
American scholars have explained how in the first years of life, sleeping more, in fact, assuming the horizontal position, allows more space for the bones to grow, while the upright position makes the body stop gaining more centimeters.
To reach this conclusion, the researchers examined lambs to which sensors were applied to the animals' legs to monitor bone development. The conclusion was that up to 90% of growth occurred when the lambs were at rest or sleeping, and that bone development is essentially absent when the animals are standing or moving.
The reason would be exactly what common sense would suggest, and it is the pressure that weight exerts on the cartilage coinciding with the joints that prevents the bones from stretching. Wilsman also confirms that the pain that children often complain about in their extremities at night are not always whims, but rather signs that the bones are stretching.
They also gain weight
Babies not only grow more while they sleep, but they also gain weight, especially fat around the belly. Although researchers aren't sure exactly why this happens, they have suggested that the growth could be due to different hormonal signals that work while babies sleep, causing their bodies to function differently and develop.
But how many hours should children sleep?
Growth is a complex process that requires several hormones to stimulate various biological events in the blood, organs, muscles and bones.
A protein hormone secreted by the pituitary gland called growth hormone (or "human growth hormone") is a key player in these events. Several factors affect its production, including nutrition, stress, and exercise. In young children, however, the most important factor is sleep.
Growth hormone is released throughout the day. But for children, the most intense period of release is shortly after the onset of deep sleep.
That is why, as we have already mentioned, children who are small between 0 and 3 years old will need to exceed ten or eleven hours of sleep on average, while from the age of 3 onwards they can sleep between ten and eleven hours. Children older than primary school require at least an average of 9 or ten hours of sleep.
What happens if the baby doesn't get enough sleep?
Without adequate sleep, growth problems can occur, primarily slow or stunted growth. Growth hormone production can also be disrupted in children with certain physical sleep problems, such as obstructive sleep apnea.
Some children do not produce enough growth hormone naturally, and lack of sleep makes the problem worse. It can cause a condition known as growth hormone deficiency that can affect the strength of the heart or lungs or the function of the immune system. (It can be treated with a supplemental hormone.)
Children who do not get enough sleep also show other changes in the levels of hormones circulating in their body. Hormones that regulate hunger and appetite may be affected, causing the child to overeat and prefer high-calorie carbohydrates. Additionally, lack of sleep can affect the way the body metabolizes these foods, causing insulin resistance, which is linked to type 2 diabetes.
Lack of sleep at night can also affect motor skills and concentration during the day, leading to more accidents and behavioral problems, and poor performance in school.
Ensure a good night's sleep
Most children need more sleep than their parents realize.
Signs that your child may not be getting enough rest include irritability or lethargy during the day, trouble concentrating in school or poor grades, and trouble waking up in the morning.
Therefore, to help your child sleep the appropriate hours you can do the following:
Set a consistent bedtime. School-age children should be in bed between 8:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. (earlier for younger children and children who need a lot of sleep).
Establish a good bedtime routine that helps signal to your child's body that it's time to relax. This could include giving him a bath or a light dinner, reading a bedtime story, and talking or singing softly to him while you tuck him in.
Make sure your child's room is conducive to sleeping. It should be dark and quiet.
Avoid stimulating activity before bed