Raising children can bring many joys, but sleep deprivation is not one of them. So it’s no wonder parents are willing to take some drastic measures — in the form of sleeping pills — to help their kids get a good night’s sleep.
The latest findings from The Sleep Doctor show that 79% of parents give their children some kind of substance to help them fall asleep, with 66% using melatonin, 35% using diphenhydramine, and 20% using prescription sleeping pills. Others report using a variety of drugs, from herbal and over-the-counter medications to CBD, THC, and even alcohol.
Millennial and Gen Z parents are most likely to drug their children to put them to sleep, with 84% and 83% respectively saying they have done so.
“Parents are desperate, exhausted, and juggling too many things… and having trouble sleeping in their children only exacerbates the situation,” said Dr. Nilong Vyas, a pediatrician, public health expert, and board-certified sleep specialist. Sleep Doctors surveyed 1,201 parents in April.
The Sleep Foundation says children need sleep to maintain physical and mental health, with research showing sleep plays an important role in brain development, mood, cognitive performance, resilience, language and memory. Parents need sleep for many reasons, including mood, brain function, immunity, reduced risk of heart disease and stroke, and, according to a recent study, to avoid rising stress levels.
When kids don’t nap, parents often miss out on important rest, and according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, 25 to 50 percent of kids (40 percent of teens) are affected by sleep problems like sleep apnea and night terrors. 25% of children and 35% of adolescents.
Nonetheless, Vyas told wealth“Ideally it would be better to change [bedtime] behavior and change it so your child can learn to fall asleep independently without supplementation.
But is melatonin unsafe?
Melatonin is a hormone produced by the brain in response to darkness and helps regulate the body’s natural sleep and wakefulness cycles, called circadian rhythms. It is sold as a supplement not regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, often in the form of colorful gummies, and may cause side effects when taken by children, including drowsiness, headaches and increased bedwetting.
Taking too much can cause vomiting, extreme drowsiness, and slurred speech. That’s why, according to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 11,000 children — more than half between the ages of 3 and 5 — were found to have unsupervised doses of melatonin between 2019 and 2022. Was taken to the emergency room.
Additionally, an evaluation of 25 melatonin gummy supplements published last year in the Journal of the American Medical Association by the Cambridge Health Alliance found that nearly all of the products were inaccurately labeled, with actual hormone levels ranging from 74% to 347% of the labeled amount. . One product had no detectable melatonin content but did contain more than 31 mg of CBD, but there was no data to support its use in children.
“It’s like the Wild West of melatonin supplementation,” says Vyas, who doesn’t recommend its use to the families she works with.
“Many studies have shown that melatonin has positive improvements in neurodiverse children, children with circadian rhythm disorders, delayed sleep phase syndrome and a few indications such as jet lag,” she said. “But there’s not enough research to make general recommendations.”
It’s also not a good idea, she adds, because melatonin works on a feedback loop, meaning that if melatonin is provided from an external source, the body slows down its natural production, and More and more supplements are needed.
“Also, it can cause contradictory reactions, meaning many children will take it and wake up at 3 or 4 a.m.,” she said.
The Sleep Doctors survey found that children ages 4 to 7 take melatonin more frequently than other age groups, followed by children ages 8 to 12 and 1 to 3; but 2% take it It is given to children younger than 6 months, and 3% give it to children 6 to 11 months old. Additionally, while most parents (97%) gave their children melatonin more than once, 21% said they had done so about 10 times, and 13% said at least 50 times. 45% of parents said it was recommended by doctors.
That’s not surprising to Vyas, considering that desperate parents and doctors are “severely under-educated about sleep habits,” and they might look for studies on melatonin in children but not find much — and they Might just think it’s safe, given that it’s unregulated and available.
Other sleep aids—and how to avoid them
Medical professionals do not recommend the use of diphenhydramine, an antihistamine with sedating side effects, except for occasional use (such as to relieve jet lag).
“It’s indicated and tested on children with allergies, so if you use it outside of those parameters, you’re using it off label, and it’s not without side effects,” she said. She warned that in some cases In some cases, Benadryl may have the opposite effect, making the child “completely high.” She warns that using it every night “can create a false ability to fall asleep.”
When it comes to prescription sleep aids, such as Ambien (zolpidem), Sonata (zaleplon), and Restoril (temazepam, a highly addictive benzodiazepine), all of these are expressly prohibited. for children. But the survey showed that these drugs are given to their children by parents, with 64% of parents saying they do so on the advice of their doctors. In fact, 13% of parents said they took prescription sleep aids 50 or more times; 4% for children younger than 6 months, 11% for children 6 to 11 months, and 16% for children 6 to 11 months. For use by children 1 to 3 years of age.
“Ambien is risky even for adults and has a lot of nasty side effects,” Vyas said. “It has been tested and shown to work for short-term use in adults, but many people have become so dependent on it that it is difficult to sleep without it… It is being used long-term and daily as a substitute for good sleep habits and hygiene.”
What does this look like for children? “Consistency in daily life is crucial,” she says, as is following your child’s sleep cues so they can fall asleep when their body needs it most.
also:
- no screen: Minimize blue light stimulation from screens at least two hours before bed to help your body produce melatonin naturally.
- play outside: Exposure to sunlight and sunset helps regulate your child’s circadian rhythm.
- for example: Teach your child to fall asleep independently.
- receive help: Work it out with a sleep coach.
“Everyone wants a quick fix… but you can’t blame the parents because they are getting stuck in a vicious cycle,” Vyas said. “Breaking bad habits is hard work, but it’s doable — and then you can set your kids up for good sleep habits for the rest of their lives.”
More information about children’s health:
