The Effect of Sleep Hygiene Education on Sleep Deprivation and Sleep Habits in Children.

Purpose: This study aimed to determine the effect of sleep hygiene training delivered through a combined program on sleep deprivation and sleep habits in children.

Design: The study was conducted with 4th grade students (n = 74) in a secondary school in Konya province between January 2023 and May 2024, as a control group study with pre-post-control measurement in a non-randomized experimental study design.

Methods: In the study, the intervention group, identified through the combined program (training, task flow, and notifications), received training consisting of three sessions during the first week. The training ended in the first week and a daily notification message continued to be sent to families via social media for the remaining three weeks. The entire intervention lasted four weeks. After the intervention, posttest measures were administered to both groups. Two weeks after the end of the intervention, control measurements were taken from both groups.

Results: In the intervention group, sleepiness after school and weekend sleep habits were different from weekdays, the frequency of tea and coffee consumption decreased after the intervention compared to the pretest measurement, and falling asleep immediately after going to bed increased after the intervention. In the control group, sleepiness while doing homework in the evening and frequency of tea and coffee consumption increased in the posttest and control tests compared to the pre-test. Significant differences were found in the sub dimensions of bedtime resistance, sleep duration, and sleep anxiety (p < 0,05).

Conclusions: It was found that the combined program used in the study was effective in reducing sleep deprivation and improving sleep habits.

Clinical relevance: The findings of this study provide clinical evidence supporting the effectiveness of a combined sleep hygiene education program in reducing sleep deprivation and promoting healthy sleep habits among children. These results suggest that structured educational interventions can contribute to improving pediatric sleep health.