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Back 2 School: WNY pediatric sleep specialist offers tips for better sleep

Too much screen time and inconsistent schedules can wreak havoc on your child's sleep.

BUFFALO, N.Y. — For some kids summertime is a free-for-all when it comes to bedtimes and wakeup calls, but now that students are headed back to class, it's time to get back into a good sleep routine. 

Ideally, children (and really adults, too) should maintain a consistent sleep schedule all year — that means going to bed and waking at the same time every day, even on weekends.

"Every day because your biological clock doesn't know that it's summer vacation or that it's Christmas or that it's Sunday, for example," said Amanda Hassinger, MD MS with UBMD Pediatrics. "Children need consistent sleep schedules. It's very important to their health and their wellness."

Dr. Hassinger knows a regular sleep routine isn't often a reality, especially during the summer, so she suggests parents start adjusting their children's sleep schedules now so they're ready for back to school.

"You have to start that transition gradually otherwise that first week of school is going to be painful for everybody in the household. Not just for the children, but the children's teachers and you! If you start now, adjusting the time they wake up by even just a half an hour, every week, you'll get closer to that six or seven a.m. alarm clock that is so brutal on September 6," said Dr. Hassinger.

Dr. Hassinger says teens need eight to 10 hours of sleep each night to function properly and for proper development. Insufficient sleep can lead to serious conditions like anxiety and depression.

She also warns of too much screen time too close to bedtime.

"Every screen is the same wavelength as the sun — blue light. So even though it might look like your child is calming down watching their Cocomelon or looking at their iPad, streaming through TikTok, they're actually sending a signal to their body that it's daytime. It can suppress their own melatonin production and their sleep onset by a good two hours," said Hassinger.

She recommends a "screen curfew" each night... and yes, she says adults should shut it down too. Log off and turn off the phone at least an hour before bedtime for better sleep.

Finally, Dr. Hassinger said our bodies aren't like a bank account — we can't deposit extra sleep on the weekend and then make a withdrawal during the week. Our bodies and biological clocks don't work that way, so even though sleeping in on Saturday and Sunday feels good at the time, it doesn't make up for a lack of sleep during the school week.

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