TY - JOUR T1 - Falling asleep: the determinants of sleep latency JF - Archives of Disease in Childhood JO - Arch Dis Child SP - 686 LP - 689 DO - 10.1136/adc.2009.157453 VL - 94 IS - 9 AU - Nixon, G M AU - Thompson, J M D AU - Han, D Y AU - Becroft, D M O AU - Clark, P M AU - Robinson, E AU - Waldie, K E AU - Wild, C J AU - Black, P N AU - Mitchell, E A Y1 - 2009/09/01 UR - http://adc.bmj.com/content/94/9/686.abstract N2 - Background: Difficulty falling asleep (prolonged sleep latency) is a frequently reported problem in school-aged children.Aims: This study aimed to describe the distribution of sleep latency and factors that influence its duration.Methods: 871 children of European mothers were recruited at birth. 591 (67.9%) children took part in the follow-up at 7 years of age. Sleep and daytime activity were measured objectively by an actigraph worn for 24 h.Results: Complete sleep data were available for 519 children (87.8%) with a mean age of 7.3 years (SD 0.2). Median sleep latency was 26 minutes (interquartile range 13–42). Higher mean daytime activity counts were associated with a decrease in sleep latency (−1.2 minutes per 102 movement count per minute, p = 0.05). Time spent in sedentary activity was associated with an increase in sleep latency (3.1 minutes per hour of sedentary activity, p = 0.01).Conclusions: These findings emphasise the importance of physical activity for children, not only for fitness, cardiovascular health and weight control, but also for promoting good sleep. ER -