Children's Sleep Guidelines Updated to Promote Optimal Health

Sleep guidelines for children have been updated by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, which now suggests that infants sleep 12 to 16 hours per day while teenagers get eight to 10 hours.

The guidelines, published Monday in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, are the academy's official consensus recommendations for the amount of sleep needed to promote optimal health in children and teenagers, as well as to avoid health risks.

The consensus group recommends the following sleep hours:

• Infants 4 months to 12 months should sleep 12 to 16 hours per 24 hours (including naps).
• Children 1 to 2 years of age should sleep 11 to 14 hours per 24 hours (including naps).
• Children 3 to 5 years of age should sleep 10 to 13 hours per 24 hours (including naps).
• Children 6 to 12 years of age should sleep 9 to 12 hours per 24 hours.
• Teenagers 13 to 18 years of age should sleep 8 to 10 hours per 24 hours.

"Sleep is essential for a healthy life, and it is important to promote healthy sleep habits in early childhood," Dr. Shalini Paruthi, pediatric consensus panel moderator and fellow of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, said in a statement. "It is especially important as children reach adolescence to continue to ensure that teens are able to get sufficient sleep."

The recommendations came with the backing of the American Academy of Pediatrics, which represents 64,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists, and pediatric surgical specialists.

"The [American Academy of Sleep Medicine] found that adequate sleep duration for age on a regular basis leads to improved attention, behavior, learning, memory, emotional regulation, quality of life, and mental and physical health," said the statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics.

"Not getting enough sleep each night is associated with an increase in injuries, hypertension, obesity and depression, especially for teens who may experience increased risk of self-harm or suicidal thoughts," the statement continued.

Dr. Wendy Sue Swanson, a pediatrician with Seattle Children's Hospital and The Everett Clinic, told CBS News that as teens advance from middle school into high school, sleep often lacks.

"The majority don't get the sleep they need," Swanson told CBS News. "The National Sleep Foundation has found that over 85 percent of teens lack adequate sleep. Sleep matters: deprivation and tiredness affect schoolwork, attention, mood, interactions, unhealthy weight risk and lifelong health habits."

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