If you keep up with science news, you may have come across a recent study that is making its way around parenting circles. According to a study published Tuesday in the Archives of Disease in Childhood, children over the age of 2 who regularly have a nap-time are prone to later bedtimes and disrupted sleep.
But before you eliminate nap-time from your child’s schedule, you may want to take another look at the facts. Firstly, correlation does not equal causation, so just because there is a connection between napping and later bedtimes, doesn’t mean naps directly cause bad sleep habits.
Secondly, according to scientists who have reviewed the study (and are much more qualified than I am to talk about this), the only major link researchers found is that children who nap may take longer to fall asleep. (In my experience, this is true with adults too.)
You could, technically, stop your kids from napping so they fall asleep faster, but it will be because they’re totally bushed–and that may not be great for their development either.
So, needless to say: I think nap-time is here to stay.
