Ways to help your infant sleep through the night
Premature infants with immature brains and reflex systems are at high risk for central sleep apnea syndrome, even if these babies are otherwise healthy. Fortunately, those premature babies who have the syndrome will generally outgrow it as they mature, providing they receive careful enough monitoring and supportive care during infancy to survive. Because of the propensity toward apnea, medications that can cause respiratory drive depression are either not given to premature infants, or given under careful monitoring, with equipment for resuscitation immediately available. Such precautions are routinely taken for premature infants after general anesthesia. Caffeine has been found to help reduce apnea in preterm infants and to aid in care after general anesthesia.
Sudden infant death syndrome is sometimes theorized to be attributable to sleep apnea.
It is important to make sure that your child gets enough sleep and sleeps well. The value of sleep can be measured by your child’s smiling face, happy nature and natural energy. A tired child may have development or behavior problems. A child’s sleep problems can also cause unnecessary stress for you and the other members of your family.
Important hormone production is regulated during sleep; in children, human growth hormone (HGH) is released during deep sleep. Insufficient sleep can affect hormonal balance in adults as well. Getting enough deep sleep is important for a baby’s growth.
Many parents are unsure of how much their child should sleep. According to reports from parents, many American children are not getting enough sleep. Some children sleep different lengths of time, either shorter or longer. But most children do have the ability to sleep through the night. Children who do not sleep well may have a sleep problem.
Many children have behavioral insomnia of childhood. With sleep-onset association, parents naturally may feel that they need to “help” their child return to sleep. The child learns to connect or “associate” going to sleep with a person or activity. I have to rock my child to sleep every night and for every nap. Set aside 10 to 30 minutes to get your child ready to go to sleep each night.
Many parents are unsure of how much their child should sleep. Experts recommend that your child get the following amount of sleep at each stage of growth:
School-age children: 10 to 11 hours
These are some signs that your child has a problem with sleep: You spend too much time “helping” your child fall asleep, your child wakes up repeatedly during the night, your child snores very loudly or struggles to breathe during sleep, your child’s behavior, mood or school performance changes, your child who used to stay dry at night begins to wet the bed. You lose sleep as a result of your child’s bedtime and sleeping patterns.
If your child has an ongoing sleep problem, then you should talk to your child’s doctor or to a sleep specialist. Help for your baby’s sleep include warm milk, a white noise machine with the sound of a beating heart or soothing soft music.