SLEEP DISORDERS AND BREATHING IN CHILDREN

Sleep matters. During the critical formative years, making sure that children get the restful, quality sleep they need is vital.  A normal sleep cycle includes  rapid eye movements (REM) sleep and non-REM sleep.  The human body and brain require all stages of sleep to achieve and sustain optimal health, growth, and development.  When the airway is impeded, the brain sometimes cannot achieve REM or the deeper levels of non-REM sleep needed for proper functioning of the automatic nervous system.

 Various behavioral symptoms can manifest when children do not get the quantity and quality of sleep they need.  These include hyperactivity, behavior challenges, trouble focusing, bedwetting, learning disorders, inability to pay attention, emotional outburst, and impaired growth.  Because their brains are still developing, screening for sleep disorders is paramount for children. 

Recognizing the signs of an airway obstruction is an important step toward a diagnosis that can help a child avoid a lifetime of challenges associated with poor sleep quality and obstructive sleep disorders.  Some of the signs and symptoms are:  long and narrow face,  high and  narrow palate, enlarged tonsils and adenoids, allergies, habitual open-mouth posture, chronic mouth breathing, hyperactivity, snoring, or bedwetting.  Even though a child may sleep the whole night, if a child show signs of sleep disordered breathing, a parent should be suspicious of possible poor sleep quality.

If you feel your child may suffer from obstructed airway and breathing disorder, have them examined by their pediatrician or specialist in that field.

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