How to ensure kids get quality sleep? Renowned psychiatrist explains

How much should a child sleep? According to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, an infant under three months should sleep for around 17 hours a day. Those aged 4 to 12 months should sleep 12 to 16 hours, including nap times. While toddlers aged 12 to 24 months should sleep for up to 14 hours, preschoolers up to age 5 should sleep for around 13 hours. Kids aged up to 12 should sleep for around 12 hours, and teenagers need up to 10 hours of sleep. While this is critically important for their development, getting children to sleep well is not easy, especially if they are hyperactive. Dr Chikku Mathew, Consultant Psychiatrist at Caritas Hospital, Kottayam, offers some tips to help children get enough sleep. 

Tips for children's good sleep
1. Keeping a consistent sleep schedule, like going to bed and waking up at the same time every day. 
2. Avoid giving them tea, coffee or carbonated drinks after 4 or 5 in the evening. 
3. Indulge in physical exercises in the evening that make their body sweat. Taking a cold shower after that will naturally induce sleep. 

4. Finish children's dinner before 8 pm. 
5. Give them a glass of warm milk or half-boiled plantain half an hour after dinner. 
6. Help children avoid using laptops, mobile phone and TV after 9 pm. 
7. Help them read books, novels, or listen to their favourite music after 10 pm. 

How to ascertain their sleep quality?
According to the Mayo Clinic, you can look out for certain symptoms to see whether children are getting the required amount of sleep. If they have the following symptoms, be sure that their sleep quality is suffering:
1) Difficulty waking up in the morning
2) Gloominess
3) Poor academic performance
4) Headaches

5) Stomach upset, nausea
6) Disinterest in school activities
7) Largely irritable
8) Difficulty in concentration
9) Difficulty walking in the mornings