New resource to help kids wake up to the need for sleep

29 March 2011

New resource to help kids wake up to the need for sleep

Global health and wellbeing company Philips today announced the New Zealand launch of a new resource to support teachers and parents in educating children between the ages of 8 and 12 on the importance of sleep for their health.

The resource has been developed by a leading Australian researcher on sleep education programmes, Dr Sarah Blunden, Paediatric Sleep Research Fellow at the Centre for Sleep Research, University of South Australia, and the director of the Australian Centre for Education in Sleep.

Philips has launched the resource globally in partnership with the World Association of Sleep Medicine as part of a drive to increase awareness of how sleep impacts people’s health and well-being around the world.

Dr Geoff Kira, a researcher at the University of Auckland, says New Zealand is no exception to global trends, and that a lack of sleep can have significant impacts on children in particular.

“Many New Zealand kids don’t get enough sleep. While adults can always catch up on lost sleep, the impact on children can be more significant in that a lack of sleep can potentially impact on their mental and physical development, so it’s important to get it right from an early age.”

A study of Auckland secondary school students by Dr Kira using a variant of the sleep resource resulted in significant increases in sleep duration immediately following the programme. The new resource launched today is designed for younger children and includes interactive exercises.

The resource could be used by teachers in delivering aspects of the New Zealand health and physical education curriculum, and includes assignments on sleep, a teacher’s guide, and a guide for parents so that they can support the learning process.

The new sleep education resource is part of Philips’ SimplyHealthy@Schools programme, a wider set of educational resources designed to improve children’s health. The unbranded resources are available to download from www.simplyhealthyatschools.com.

Poor sleep impacts a large proportion of the world’s population. The recently published Philips Index for Health and Well-being report – a massive consumer research study conducted across 23 countries and involving more than 31,000 people – found that 35% of people do not feel they get enough sleep, affecting both their physical and mental health.

Philips is a global leader in the management of sleep disorders and has developed a wide range of products and solutions, from diagnostic tools through to patient-centred sleep therapy devices, to help enhance quality of sleep.

Dr David White, Chief Medical Officer for Philips Home Healthcare Solutions and Professor of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School, said: “Through our global partnership with the World Association of Sleep Medicine we hope to increase people’s understanding of the seriousness of sleep disorders, such as obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) which, if not properly managed, can have a significant impact on a person’s health and well-being.”

ENDS