3:15 a.m.? Are you kidding? Why am I awake and staring at a digital clock that says it’s 3:15 a.m.? Ever have a night like that? The more you get frustrated with the advancing clock, the less you sleep. The less you sleep, the more frustrated you get. If sleep is supposed to be restorative, being up at… 3:16 a.m. can be depressing. Getting to sleep and staying asleep can be an even bigger struggle for kids managing rare diseases.
An Australian study reported in Cystic Fibrosis News Today compared a group of healthy children and children battling cystic fibrosis (CF) to get a sense of the quality of sleep that each group was getting.
Tracking the quality of sleep can be a hard event to quantify. When those new-fangled, wristwatch-type devices came out a few years ago, I gave it a try. I tracked my steps during the day, and my sleep at night. By the time I uploaded the prior night’s data to figure out whether I’d slept well or not, I found myself yawning at all the flowcharts which ultimately defeated the purpose.
In this particular study, the researchers followed 87 kids with cystic fibrosis and 55 healthy kids.
All the children wore the wrist devices. This was an important change in the study guardrails, as previous studies had been Q&A sessions based on the perceived quality of sleep and daytime tiredness.
The results spoke for themselves. The kids with CF slept much less than the other kids, had more sleep disturbances, and even struggled with sleep apnea. Quite simply, they were awake more throughout the night and slept less.
Lack of sleep in my home can have devastating results in the morning and the day that follows. Toast seems to get burned more often. Buses may get missed. And teeth may not be brushed as completely as they should. And let’s not even talk about my patience for the above mishaps—that can be really hard to measure when I haven’t slept well the night before.
The same proved to be true with the children of this study. Any parent, caregiver, or teacher can bear witness that a child who doesn’t get a good night’s sleep can have a big influence on their mood, behavior, and overall outlook for the day.
As a result of the study, researchers determined the quality and quantity of sleep for kids with CF should be considered as a serious part of the overall treatment plan for children of all ages.
Learn more about CF from our partners CysticLife and Strawfie Challenge.
