According to a University release, one UNM professor claims arguing parents can disrupt the development of children.
College of Education Family Studies Professor Ryan Kelly found that, while Americans spend around $7 billion annually on supplemental education, if parents can’t get along with each other, “then all this conditioning is moot.”
According to the release, Kelly’s research looks at many of the issues that affect marriage, such as finances, problem drinking, mental health problems and the physical relationship had between each other, and their children.
Kelly and others noticed all of these typical relationship interactions created a stressful environment for children, according to the release.
That release states that when looking at children from ages 8 to 16, research indicated that when children are exposed to one or more of these stress-related issues, they don’t sleep well.
“They become vigilant at detecting a level of threat,” Kelly is quoted as saying in the press release. “The child starts to worry about a particular parent, their own personal safety or the safety of their siblings. These specific worries are what interrupts the child’s ability to sleep.”
Some side effects from not sleeping well include trouble with standardized tests and issues with academic functions resulting in lower grades, according to the release, and research indicates children will show symptoms of depression and anxiety, in addition to an increased body mass index.
According to the release, Kelly’s research also looked at the lasting effects of stress on sleep, which shows that a 9-year-old who has experienced familial stress at one point has the potential to experience sleep issues years later due to a lasting view of the family dynamic as stressful.
Kelly advises parents that the single biggest thing they can do — aside from maintaining a calm, safe environment — is to give children a consistent sleep schedule, according to the press release, emphasizing that children need to go to bed every night at the same time, or within a 30-minute timeframe of that time period.
According to the release, no technology 30 to 60 minutes before bedtime is also a key to better sleep for children, as bright screens prevent the release of melatonin — the hormone that supports sleep and wake cycles.
Matthew Reisen is the news editor at the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @MReisen88.
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