Concern over kids' sleep habits not new

Worried that your kids are not getting enough sleep? Guess what? Parents have had the same worry for 100 years, according to research cited in this article from HealthDay.

(HealthDay News)—With televisions, computers, cellphones, school work and extracurricular activities, parents worry that their kids are so busy that they aren't getting enough sleep.

But a new review suggests this is not a new problem, and perhaps it might not be a problem at all.

"Kids are sleeping less than they used to, with sleep declining by about 1.25 hours over the last 100 years," said review co-author Tim Olds, a professor of health sciences at the Sansom Institute for Health Research in Adelaide, Australia.

But, he said, it's not clear whether children are really missing that additional slumber.

"Health 'experts' have always recommended that kids get more sleep than they do, regardless of how much they get," he explained.

What's more, even 100 years ago, parents thought their children were shortchanging their shuteye time. In their review, Olds and his colleagues cited a study from 1905 that said: "The stress and strain of modern life necessitates increased brain activity, and in order that the mental energies may last, it is obvious that brain rest should be obtained."

Read the full article.