sleep guidelines Archives

Kids who don’t get enough sleep are at risk for a whole range of mental and physical woes, including some potentially serious health issues. New sleep guidelines for babies, school-age children and teens, released Monday, outline just how many hours of sleep kids need at every age in order to help them be at their best.

The American Academy of Pediatrics is lending its backing to the recommendations developed by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

Here’s the lowdown on how much sleep kids need at different ages, according to a consensus group of 13 sleep medicine experts and researchers who developed the recommendations:

Infants 4 to 12 months – 12 to 16 hours of sleep every 24 hours (including naps).
Children 1 to 2 years – 11 to 14 hours of sleep every 24 hours (includingnaps).
Children 3 to 5 years – 10 to 13 hours of sleep every 24 hours (including naps).
Children 6 to 12 years – 9 to 12 hours of sleep every 24 hours.
Teens 13 to 18 years – 8 to 10 hours of sleep every 24 hours.

Recommendations for babies younger than 4 months aren’t included because there is such a wide range of what’s normal when it comes to sleep patterns in newborns, and there isn’t enough research to back up guidance in the youngest of infants.