Entry 1: A PMHNP’s Reflective Journal about a Patient Encounter

Children never have sleep issues unless they intake too much sugar in their diet.

Children Dietary Sugar Comprehensive Nursing Essay Example

Dietitians and mental healthcare providers acknowledge a close association between a child’s dietary sugar intake and their quality of sleep. However, evidence abounds demonstrating that it is not the only cause, as bedtime use of technology is another cause of sleeplessness in a child (Fuller et al., 2017). Other causes include stress, underlying medical conditions, and side effects of some medications. In the case of toddlers, having snacks, juices, and sugary sweets should be avoided at bedtime because it increases their blood sugar levels before the levels drop again. The toddlers’ bodies have to work hard to ensure re-stabilization of the blood sugar by releasing adrenaline, a stress hormone. The adrenaline causes restlessness in the toddler, negatively impacting their sleep. Eliason et al. (2020) note that children under two years to the age of 18 need not consume any added sugar in their dietary intake, while those above two years should not exceed 25 grams of added sugar in their daily intake. These and other research findings demonstrate that a high dietary sugar intake can lead to sleep loss and waking up a lot during the night. Intake of high carbohydrate diets increases tryptophan levels (a sleep-promoting amino acid), leading to orexin suppression. As a neurotransmitter promoting alertness, too much sugar intake would offset poor sleep quality later in the night and decrease the proportion of deep restorative sleep hence sleep issues in children (Miller et al., 2019). (Children Dietary Sugar Comprehensive Nursing Essay Example)

           St-Onge et al. (2016) opine that research has demonstrated that dietary patterns that are biased towards a high carbohydrate intake lead to reduced sleep onset latency (SOL)and slow-wave sleep(SWS), and increased rapid eye movement(REM). Subsequently, parents, guardians, and other primary child caregivers should consider their children’s dietary sugar intake as it affects their sleep patterns which then cascades to other unhealthy lifestyle choices like eating too much leading to excess weight. Dietitians should also develop nutrition education targeting child caregivers on the components of a healthy diet premised on a child’s age and gender. In conclusion, it is true to say that dietary sugar intake affects a child’s sleep, but it would be erroneous to consider it as the only source of sleep issues in a child. (Children Dietary Sugar Comprehensive Nursing Essay Example)