As per the recent study, children who are sleeping for less than nine hours will suffer in log term as it leads to cognitive impairment and mental problems along with causing less grey matter in the regions of the brain. The study has been published in the Lancet Child and Adolescent Health journal. All the elementary school children who get less than nine hours of sleep per night will have significant differences in several parts of the brain regions. All these are responsible for memory, intelligence and well--being. A sleep of 9 to 12 hours is recommended in the nights for children. The study was conducted by the researchers of University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM).

All those who sleep for less than nine hours will get mental health problems in the future like anxiety, impulsive behaviours and depression. Lack of proper sleep is also related to cognitive difficulties like decision making, problem solving and memory issues. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine suggests that all the children between the age of 6 and 12 should sleep for 9 to 12 hours. The researchers examined the data taken from 8300 children aged between 9 and 10 years. All these were enrolled in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. The MRI images, medical records and the surveys are analyzed. The program was funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The American Academy of Pediatrics asks the parents to promote good sleep for the children.