Pediatricians and pediatric sleep medicine specialists at Michigan's top sleep centers report a rising demand for services for kids with sleep issues.
Some of the most common problems they see:
• Toddlers and preschoolers with problems getting to sleep and awakening at night and who won't return to sleep without a lengthy ritual.
• Sleep-deprived teens and young adults who go to bed way too late and sleep past noon the next day.
• Children with sleep apnea -- breathing disturbances that interrupt sleep -- a problem increasing with the nation's childhood obesity epidemic.
Growing concern
At the University of Michigan, the Pediatric Sleep Medicine Program has grown over the past 10 years from a single doctor with about 250 appointments a year to a large multi-disciplinary center with as many as 1,800 appointments a year and a diverse team of sleep doctors, developmental pediatricians and a pediatric psychologist.
Dr. Timothy Hoban, director of pediatric sleep medicine and clinical neurophysiology at U-M, attributes the program's growth to more recognition by parents and doctors that "underlying sleep disorders can substantially impact attention, daytime behavior and school performance in children."
Sleep loss is linked to declining grade-point averages in college as well as a craving for carbohydrates, according to two separate studies presented in June at the Associated Professional Sleep Societies annual conference. A good night's sleep benefits athletic performance, reaction time, vigor, fatigue and mood in college basketball players, according to a small study published in the July issue of the journal Sleep.
Teen can't stay awake
A 2006 report from the National Sleep Foundation found that four out of five teens don't get a good night's sleep. About half of those have serious sleep problems and another 30% have borderline problems, the report found.
Dr. Meeta Singh, a Henry Ford Health System sleep medicine specialist, says technology can also play a role.
"Too many young people get to bed very late because of homework, sports and other commitments and technology -- TVs, cell phones and computers -- located in their bedrooms," he says. "You try your best, but there's a good chance they won't listen," says Singh of measures to rid bedrooms of items that keep kids awake.
For older kids who don't get to bed until late at night, exposure to morning sunshine or light therapy and the sleep aid melatonin taken an hour before bedtime may help adjust a child's sleep schedule effectively. "Of all the sleep aids in children, melatonin wins hands down," says Hoban.
Obesity one factor
About 2% to 3% of children have sleep apnea, but the numbers may be on the rise with the childhood obesity epidemic, specialists say.
"I've seen a dramatic shift in my population," says Dr. John Schuen, a pediatric sleep specialist for the Grand Rapids-based Spectrum Health system. "With the explosion of problems of obesity in children comes the problem of sleep apnea."
Parents typically are alerted to the problem because children with sleep apnea may snore loudly.
Obesity "affects the anatomy and structure of the airway, which gets crowded because of extra tissue around the neck," says Abdulhamid. Breathing devices called continuous positive air pressure (CPAP) machines worn at night help reduce sleep problems. Weight loss can also help, but, says Abdulhamid, "unfortunately that is not an easy thing to do."
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