Study finds daytime naps good for older kids, not just toddlers (2024)

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Study finds daytime naps good for older kids, not just toddlers? ›

Taking a nap is an essential part of a young toddler's day. But most kids give up napping by the age of five. University of California Irvine researchers studied kids age 10 to 12 years old. They found those who had a midday nap were happier and had more self-control, fewer behavior problems and a higher IQ.

As kids grow and develop, naps give their bodies and minds time to rest and recharge during those big changes. Plus, if children get overtired, it's actually harder for them to fall asleep easily at nighttime. There are other benefits, too: Naps help kids learn.

However, by five years of age, most children no longer need naps, with less than 30% of children that age still taking them. The number decreases even more by age six, where less than 10% of children nap. Nearly all children stop napping by seven years of age.

If Your Child Is Around About 5 Years Old, They Can Probably Skip A Nap. There's no exact age that your toddler will stop napping: it's generally between ages 3 and 5, but for some kids, it could be as young as 2 (especially if they have older siblings running around and not napping).

“Many lab studies across all ages have demonstrated that naps can show the same magnitude of improvement as a full night of sleep,” she said. “Here, we had the chance to ask real-world, adolescent schoolchildren.” Entrenching good sleep habits at an early age may be important for long-term health.

To be exact, those who napped often were found to have a difference of 2.6 to 6.5 years of aging than those who power through the day without a nap. “Our findings suggest that, for some people, short daytime naps may be a part of the puzzle that could help preserve the health of the brain as we get older,” Dr.

While a 30- to 90-minute nap in older adults appears to have brain benefits, anything longer than an hour and a half may create problems with cognition, the ability to think and form memories, according to the study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

Naps allow children with an immature hippocampus to process memories. Young children give up their afternoon nap, not based on their age, but their brain development, Spencer hypothesizes. “Naps are beneficial to everybody. Naps protect memory for everybody, no matter what age.

Daytime napping among older people is a normal part of aging – but it may also foreshadow Alzheimer's disease and other dementias.

A healthy adult doesn't need to nap, but can benefit from a nap of 10 to 20 minutes, or 90 to 120 when sleep-deprived. There is some evidence that older adults may benefit from napping for an hour in the afternoon.

What time should a 7 year old go to bed? ›

What time should a 7-year-old go to bed? According to the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), a seven-year-old needs 9 to 11 hours of sleep every night. If your child needs to be awake for school at, say, 6:30 am, the reasonable hour for bedtime can be between 7:15 pm latest, 7:45 pm.

In general, the best nap length for adults is about 20 minutes and no longer than 30 minutes. Sleeping for 20 minutes allows the napper to get a bit of light sleep to boost alertness without entering into deep sleep.

You can expect another nap transition (and ultimately longer naps) between 15 - 18 months. (Remember, short naps during a nap transition are common!) Once on a 1-nap schedule, your baby's naps can be 2 hours or more!

Encourage afternoon naps.

This is a better fix for sleep deprivation in teens than sleeping-in, which throws off their body's sleep cycle.

According to the National Sleep Foundation, teens do need more sleep than adults. It's best for them to have eight to 10 hours of sleep per night, but because of homework and other factors, they often sleep less. Taking a brief nap after school is considered to be an effective way for teens to fortify themselves.

Your child may feel this way because of too much or not enough activity. It can also come from stress, lack of sleep, boredom, and poor diet. Many medical problems, including viral infections, can cause fatigue. Emotional problems, especially depression, are often the cause.

Napping offers various benefits for healthy adults, including: Relaxation. Reduced fatigue. Increased alertness.

Ultra-busy schedules may require paring down. Encourage afternoon naps. Tired teens may benefit from a 30- to 45-minute nap before dinner. This is a better fix for sleep deprivation in teens than sleeping-in, which throws off their body's sleep cycle.

While most children between ages 4 and 5 will no longer nap, Playforth says that there are exceptions. "Any child who is 4-years-old and still napping and sleeping well at night does not need to drop their nap," she says.