Sleep Medications For Toddlers
Lack of sleep can not only make your toddler irritated but also affects his health in general. It can have adverse effects on his learning capabilities as well. This is why parents need to make sure that they undertake remedies for dealing with sleep disorders in their toddler.
Sleep problems in toddlers can have a bad impact on their overall growth. If you see that your child’s sleeping problems are persistent, you need to do some basic things to set it back in order. A proper sleep regime, lessening consumption of caffeine, increasing consumption of iron, are some easy remedies you can adopt. If still things don’t fall in place, within a month, you could take some expert advice and get to the core of the problem.
Proper Sleep Habits
The first thing you can do, to improve your child’s sleeping habit, is to let him have an improved sleeping regime. If you reschedule both his day and night sleep times, it might make a considerable difference and solve your problem. The best sleep routine includes right sleeping time, waking up with the sunlight, regular exercises and a proper diet. In short, staying healthy!
Caffeine
Reduce your child’s caffeine consumption. For instance, soft drinks, high energy drinks, tea, coffee, chocolates, are some items which contain caffeine, and can blow your child’s sleep off, if consumed before afternoon nap, or before going to bed at night.
Iron
Children with poor sleep, low appetite, and with some behavioral issues as well, might have iron deficiency in them. It could be anemia and must be cured under doctor’s supervision. Even if the sleep problems are mild, but are having an effect on your child’s well-being, you need to consult a professional. These are some basic changes you can make for your child. If these aren’t giving you satisfactory results, you can take expert help. Note that an anxious behaviour in your child, for over 2 weeks should be communicated to a professional for proper advice. Each child has different reasons for sleep disorders. A few remedies for treating your kid’s sleep disorder are discussed below:
Sleep Medicines
A doctor might prescribe some medication. It could be melatonin or a sedative for regaining your child’s sleep. The medication could go on for few weeks, depending upon your child’s improvement. Ask your doctors about the side effects beforehand. Some health food shops or nearby chemists have sleep medications, but they must be approved by doctors before being given to children. Abide by the doctor’s advice and never overdose with medicines. In addition to this treatment, if you help your child improve with the behavioral strategies, he is less likely to face sleep problems even after his medication stops.
Herbal Medicines
Herbal and natural remedies for treating sleep problems also can be used, but with caution and proper knowledge. Herbs like valerian, chamomile, hops, passion flower, St. John’s wort are beneficial in correcting the sleep problems. These are available in health-food shops, but they are not a guaranteed help. Note that herbal remedies often don’t undergo tests and trials like doctor prescribed medications.
Sleeping Tablets
Some sleeping tablets like benzodiazepines are consumed by adults for their sleep disorders. Studies haven’t approved them for children’s consumption, though in some extremes cases, doctors prescribe half a tablet for children. It is not safe to let your child consume these tablets without expert’s suggestions.
Other Prescription Medications
If there are some behavioural disorders in your child, like ADHD or ASD, or some medical issues like cerebral palsy, or even development delay with poor sleep, you should consult a doctor and discuss your child’s condition with him in detail. A pediatrician could give some additional medicines for these sleeping problems which your child suffers from.
Ideally, it is better to consult a doctor if you feel that routine habits are not able to help the kid in overcoming his sleeping disorders. While you know what will work best for your child, the information given above will come in handy in finding the right treatment for your kid’s sleeping disorders.
