SLEEP DISORDERS AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT: IMPACTS ON BEHAVIOR, LEARNING, AND EMOTIONAL HEALTH

Authors

  • Atália Marisa da Silva Santos
  • Cláudia Rossini Simões Ribeiro
  • Marianna Rodrigues Souto Vieira
  • Lucas Igreja Pereira
  • Tais Adriana Pagliarini Torri
  • Vânia Santana de Lima
  • Ana Cleide Salazar dos Santos
  • James Resende Dias Nascimento
  • Osvaldo Cavalcante da Costa Neto
  • Ediuza Pinheiro de Souza

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63330/sasciencesv6n2-244

Keywords:

Behavior, Child development, Child sleep, Learning

Abstract

Sleep is a biological need in childhood, and duration recommendations guide practice, but the evidence on its repercussions for development is scattered. This study aimed to summarize what the literature indicates about the association between sleep alterations and behavior, cognition, learning, and emotional health in children. It is a narrative review, with searches in PubMed and SciELO in May 2026 and purposive selection of publications from 2016 to 2022, which gathered eight documents: four systematic reviews, one with meta-analysis, one clinical review, one cohort study, and two recommendation documents on sleep duration. For cognitive and behavioral outcomes, effects were generally small: in preschoolers, associations were of small magnitude, and in children aged 5 to 13 years, sleep duration was minimally associated with cognition, with no association with attention or memory. For emotional regulation, results were heterogeneous, and longitudinal studies indicated that early sleep problems predict later emotional problems. Evidence on brain development did not allow firm conclusions. Because observational studies and subjective measures predominate, difficulties in behavior, learning, or emotional health cannot be attributed to sleep alone. Longitudinal studies with objective sleep measures and Brazilian samples are recommended.

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References

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WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION. Guidelines on physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep for children under 5 years of age. Geneva: WHO, 2019. 33 p. ISBN 978-92-4-155053-6. Disponível em: https://iris.who.int/handle/10665/311664. Acesso em: 5 out. 2026.

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Published

2026-10-21

How to Cite

Santos, A. M. da S. ., Ribeiro, C. R. S. ., Vieira, M. R. S. ., Pereira, L. I. ., Torri, T. A. P. ., de Lima, V. S. ., dos Santos, A. C. S. ., Nascimento, J. R. D. ., da Costa Neto, O. C. ., & de Souza, E. P. . (2026). SLEEP DISORDERS AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT: IMPACTS ON BEHAVIOR, LEARNING, AND EMOTIONAL HEALTH . South American Sciences, 6(2), e26471. https://doi.org/10.63330/sasciencesv6n2-244

Issue

Vol. 6 No. 2 (2026): South American Sciences

Section

Artigos

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