Falling asleep: the determinants of sleep latency

• Published in: Archives of disease in childhood 2009-09, Vol.94 (9), p.686-689
• Main Authors: Nixon, G M, Thompson, J M D, Han, D Y, Becroft, D M O, Clark, P M, Robinson, E, Waldie, K E, Wild, C J, Black, P N, Mitchell, E A
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Age; Babies; Biological and medical sciences; Body Weight; Child; Childhood obesity; Childhood sleep disorders; Children; Children & youth; Company distribution practices; Diseases; Distribution; Elementary school students; Exercise; Exercise - physiology; Female; Follow-Up Studies; General aspects; Health aspects; Humans; Insomnia; Laboratories; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Medical sciences; Metabolism; Miscellaneous; Obesity in children; Parents; Parents & parenting; Pediatric diseases; Physical Activities; Physical fitness; Polysomnography; Pregnancy; Prevention; Prevention and actions; Prospective Studies; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Rating Scales; Regression (Statistics); Regression Analysis; Risk factors; Sampling; Seasons; Sleep; Sleep disorders; Sleep disorders in children; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders - diagnosis; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders - etiology; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders - psychology; Variables; Young Children
• ISSN: 0003-9888; 1468-2044
• DOI: 10.1136/adc.2009.157453

Background:Difficulty falling asleep (prolonged sleep latency) is a frequently reported problem in school-aged children.Aims:This study aimed to describe the distribution of sleep latency and factors that influence its duration.Methods:871 children of European mothers were recruited at birth. 591 (67.9%) children took part in the follow-up at 7 years of age. Sleep and daytime activity were measured objectively by an actigraph worn for 24 h.Results:Complete sleep data were available for 519 children (87.8%) with a mean age of 7.3 years (SD 0.2). Median sleep latency was 26 minutes (interquartile range 13–42). Higher mean daytime activity counts were associated with a decrease in sleep latency (−1.2 minutes per 102 movement count per minute, p = 0.05). Time spent in sedentary activity was associated with an increase in sleep latency (3.1 minutes per hour of sedentary activity, p = 0.01).Conclusions:These findings emphasise the importance of physical activity for children, not only for fitness, cardiovascular health and weight control, but also for promoting good sleep.