By tracking sleep patterns of children from Portugal, to Japan, to the United States, researchers found that a lack of sleep at night has a direct influence on whether or not a child is likely to become obese.
In fact, a child getting the least amount of sleep relative to their peers is 92% more likely to be obese than others. It was shown that boys are a bit more likely to have sleep affect their propensity to become overweight. More specifically, this study showed that by increasing the amount of sleep a child is getting a night by a single hour can lead to an average of a 9% decrease in the likelihood of becoming obese. Often times parents may not be aware of how much sleep their son or daughter needs.
But in this day and age, it’s becoming more likely that he or she is not getting enough. Be sure to discuss your child’s sleep patterns with their pediatrician next time you’re in.
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