| Parenting
Does Your Child Snore? Should
You Worry About It?
The American Sleep Disorders
Association says there are 84 different ways that sleep can be negatively
affected. Snoring is one of the most common. Other ways include insomnia,
sleepwalking, talking or eating while asleep, sleep apnea, and
bedwetting.
Millions of people throughout the world snore
each and every night. Of these, an incredible 35 percent are children.
Not surprisingly, experts say children need
periods of uninterrupted sleep. It is important for their physical and emotional
health and for their growth and development. The quality of sleep directly
affects how a child comprehends, solves problems, and pays attention to the
tasks at hand.
When a child has a sleep disorder, such as sleep
apnea or snoring (see
http://all-about-snoring.com for
an explanation of the difference), sleep patterns are disrupted, which in
turn can affect how he or she functions during waking hours.
'Our bodies have a rhythm of sleep and waking
that they repeat each and every night of our lives,' says Dr. Stephen Sheldon,
director of the Sleep Medicine Center at Children's Memorial Hospital in
Chicago. 'If anything occurs that disrupts this rhythm, then a sleep disorder
can occur which complicates how we sleep as well as how we function during
the following day.' |
