American schools are full of sleepy fifth-grade students too tired to learn because of lost sleep due to nightly battles with parents over bedtimes or staying up late to watch their favorite television programs, says a new study from Ball State University.

A survey of 199 fifth graders found that the majority of youngsters regularly experience sleep loss and feel sleepy during the day at least two-to-four times weekly. Nearly half admitted to having trouble waking up in the morning on school days.

The lack of a good night's sleep on a regular basis may leave some children suffering from negative changes in their behavior throughout the day, said Denise Amschler, a professor of physiology and health science.

"Sleep affects the health and well-being of children and plays a key role in preventing disease and injury, stability of mood and the ability to learn," she said. "If this study is a good indication, youngsters are not getting enough quality sleep. Elementary school-aged children require an average of 10 to 11 hours of sleep each night, and most aren't getting it."

The study found that 48 percent of students admitted to arguing with their parents at least twice weekly about when they should go to bed, 31.7 percent indicated staying up late two-to-four times per week without their parents' permission and 30.2 percent said they were staying up late five-to-seven nights per week when parents thought they were asleep.

The presence of televisions and computers in children's bedrooms may play a key role in their decreased sleep time and subsequent daytime fatigue, Amschler said.

"Because of the adverse effects of sleep deprivation on children's health and learning potential, healthy sleep environments should be created at home," she said. "Parents need to monitor their children's sleep behaviors, including talking with their youngsters about their sleep attitude and experiences."

The study also found:
• Sixty-two percent of students reported their mothers established when it was time to go to bed while 18.6 percent said it was their father and 11.6 percent made their own bedtimes.
• The most common bedtime was either 9 p.m. (33.7 percent) or 9:30 p.m.(21 percent). However, 33.6 percent of fifth graders went to bed at 10 p.m. or later.
• The most common time for getting out of bed for school was 7 a.m. or after for 43.7 percent of students while 18.1 percent said it was 6:45 a.m.
• About one-fourth of respondents said they slept too little five-to-seven times per week while 39.2 percent slept too little two-to-four times weekly.

Fifth-grade teachers are noticing the poor sleep habits of their students. Teachers reported 33.6 percent of students regularly yawn, 16.6 percent complain about having too little sleep and 8.6 percent appear hyperactive.

"Teachers and other school personnel should appreciate the effects of sleep loss on learning and classroom behavior," Amschler said. "Sleep-related education needs to be integrated into the health curriculum to teach children about the benefits of sleep as well as the consequences of not getting enough quality sleep."

Newswise