10 Tips That Will Stop Sleep Problems From Resulting In Falling School Grades

It has been believed for some time now that inadequate or poor quality sleep in teenagers leads to poor performance at school, but it was not until recently that a study confirmed that teenage children with poor sleeping habits do in fact suffer from lower grades.

Below are 10 tips to make sure that a healthy child enjoys the quality of sleep needed to do well in school.*� Do not be tempted to take a nap in the afternoon after school. Should you find that you are so tired you are unable to keep your eyes open then take a nap but limit it to no more than an hour.*� When it comes to bedtime see that the bedroom is quiet, dark and cool. Do not close the room up, turn up the heat and climb into bed to watch TV. Rather, lower the heat, open the window a bit if you can to allow in some fresh air and have the room as dark as possible.*� Should you find that you are unable to get to sleep within approximately 15 or 20 minutes of climbing into bed then do not just lie in bed trying to get to sleep, because the more you try the harder it will get. Instead, get up and do something like listening to some relaxing music or reading a book. Once you start to feel tired, climb back into bed and you will be asleep in next to no time.*� Although teenagers will often spend a lot of time in their bedroom and turn it into more of a 'living' than a 'sleeping' room, avoid the temptation to use the bed for anything other than sleeping. Do not sit in bed, writing, playing games, reading, watching TV or anything else but reserve it solely for sleeping so that your body learns to associate getting into bed with going to sleep.*� Ensure that you get up at the same time each morning, whether or not it is a school day. Teenagers frequently have a lie-in at the weekends and during school holidays and, instead of helping to make you feel better, this simply disrupts your sleep pattern.*� Avoid strenuous exercise within several hours of bedtime. If you wish to play soccer or engage in other sports or strenuous activities then make sure that you do these shortly after finishing school and not an two or three hours before you go to bed.*� Steer clear of any type of drink containing caffeine after about 3 o�clock in the afternoon. This of course applies to coffee and tea, but also includes chocolate drinks and colas.*� Do not eat a heavy meal too close to bedtime. You certainly should not go to bed feeling hungry and taking a light snack prior to bedtime is okay, but climbing into bed on a full stomach can make it difficult for you to get to sleep and affect the quality of your sleep.*� Set a regular time for going to bed and try not to vary this by more than a matter of a few minutes from one day to the next.*� Do not be tempted to stay up late doing your homework or preparing for a test. Although this might seem like the solution to a specific problem in the short term, and may well keep you out of trouble for turning your homework in late or get you through a test, in the long term your performance will fall and any shorter term benefits will quickly disappear.

Follow these 10 tips and within next to no time the quality of your sleep will improve, you will feel more awake and active throughout the day and your school grades will be on the up.