How much sleep do children really need each night?

PARENTS are being encouraged to check new sleep guidelines following an intensive global review that found children need more sleep than previously thought.

Michelle Cassidy with five-month-old twins Kobe and Grace. Picture: Adam Head

CHILDREN need more sleep than previously thought, experts say.

Following an intensive review of global scientific literature, a call has gone out for an extra two hours daily for infants aged 4 to 11 months and an extra hour for children aged 1 to 13. Newborn is the only age ­category the panel believes needs less sleep.

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The Australian Centre for Education in Sleep highlights a lack of sleep in children can weaken the immune system and boost obesity. Diminished REM sleep can hamper learning.

Queensland child sleep expert Amanda Bude said many parents did not realise how much sleep their child needed.

“On average children are not getting enough sleep but we need to remember that guidelines are not set in stone and a well-rested child can have high sleep needs or low need sleeps. Not all children are the same,” she said.

Michelle Cassidy, a mum of ­five-month-old twins, said it was hard to get infants to obey guidelines.

“I made the mistake of thinking that if the babies slept too much during the day then they wouldn’t sleep at night. But once I recognised they were tired and put them down in the daytime, they slept ­better at night.”