Tamil Nadu

It is time we woke up to this issue haunting our children

CHENNAI: They may stay up all night to study, or wake up at unearthly hours to finish their lessons, only to yawn in class later. Adolescents are increasingly suffering from the impact of poor sleep cycles, say doctors.

According to N. Ramakrishnan, director of Nithra Institute of Sleep Sciences, more and more students, particularly those in Class X or XII are coming to his clinic with complaints of “oversleeping.” “Parents often complain that their children sleep a lot in daytime. They don’t realise that the children are not sleeping enough at nights,” he says.

K. Arjun*, a student of Class XII, goes to a private school in Kilpauk. Recently, his teacher sent him out of class for sleeping in class. “I did not do it on purpose. I just could not stay awake. I went to sleep at 3.30 a.m. the previous night,” says the teenager.

Dr. Ramakrishnan says students require six-and-a-half hours to eight hours of uninterrupted sleep. “Ideally, they should sleep for about eight hours continuously in order to feel fresh the next morning.” However, he says he finds it really hard to convince parents to allow their children to wake up later than 5 a.m., no matter when they go to sleep.

The pressure to score high is the primary cause for this trend, note doctors.

Ironically, over-working may prevent them from performing to their best potential. Director of the Institute of Child Health Saradha Suresh says: “A child who is sleep-deprived can neither concentrate in class, nor perform well.”

Each individual may have a specific sleep requirement, but insufficient sleep will show on the child’s health in the long run. A healthy diet, preferably four small meals, and over five hours’ sleep is mandatory, she adds.

“My son does not sleep till midnight… he does assignments and he has tuition class at 7 a.m. He has to wake up by 5,” says Bharati Raj, parent of a Class XII student.

“That’s the problem...they sleep late and are forced to wake up early. How can we expect them to stay awake in daytime, then?” asks Dr. Ramakrishnan. It is not about the quantity of sleep, it’s the quality, too.

“I get more patients with such complaints around December till April, when the examinations get over.”

Shreya Raman*, a Class X student of a private school in Santhome says: “I feel sleepy and tired all day…but if I don’t study through the night, I can’t score enough to get the group of my choice in Plus Two.”

“Our school is by the beachside and there is always a gentle breeze…I find it really hard to stay awake in class,” she adds.

(*names changed on request)

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu