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| New study calls for changes to 'mandatory' naps
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More evidence that long naps in early childhood settings may not be in the best interest of all kids has emerged from a QUT study.
The research examined the relationship between mandatory naptimes in child care and a child's night time sleep duration concurrently and 12 months later.
The research, led by Dr Sally Staton from the Sleep in Early Childhood Research Group, found that children who were exposed to more than 60 minutes mandatory sleep at child care slept worse at night and that this pattern continued when they started school.
"The results showed that children exposed to more than an hour of mandatory naptime in their child care setting had, on average, 24 minutes less night-time sleep when in childcare," said Dr Staton.
"We also found that once children had entered school and mandatory napping had ceased, those children still had a 21 minute reduction in total sleep duration," she said.
In addition, the study showed that once in school, children who had been exposed to more than 60 minutes of naptime had a total sleep duration that fell below the recommended average for children aged 3-5 years as set out by the National Sleep Foundation.
168 children, aged 50-72 months were involved in the study, which also revisited the kids in the first year of school.
Dr Staton said they conducted the research to plug the knowledge gap on the effect of mandatory naps on a child's sleep patterns.
"A common practice in child care programs internationally is the scheduling of mandatory naptime throughout the child care years," Dr Staton said.
"This means all children are required to lie on their bed and are not permitted to engage in any other activity."
However, Dr Staton said there had been little research previously on naptime programs in child care settings and the effects of these practices on children's sleep patterns.
Dr Staton said the findings raise questions regarding the most appropriate timing for transitioning children away from mandatory nap times in early childhood settings.
"There is not a specific age at which children no longer need naps, as this will vary from child to child."
In addition, Dr Staton said Australian legislation requires all child care services to provide for each child's individual sleep and rest needs but offers no specific guidelines on how these needs should be met.
"Consequently, decisions regarding the duration and mandating of naptimes for preschool children are made at an organisational level and can be influenced by staffing constraints," she said.
"Given the number of young children who attend child care and the relationship of night time sleep with multiple health outcomes, child care sleep practices represent an important focus for child health."
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