Young Kids' Snoring May Presage Problems

Snoring—it’s not just for grown-ups, and it may make a difference in a toddler’s behavior. Researchers asked 249 mothers if their children snored loudly at least twice a week at ages 2 and 3. Kids who snored at both ages had significantly higher rates (35 percent) of problems such as depression, hyperactivity, or inattention, compared with nonsnorers (10 percent), said Dean Beebe, Ph.D., of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, and colleagues in the September 1 Pediatrics. 

There were no effects on the children’s cognitive development. Previous studies suggested that breathing problems can disrupt sleep and interrupt oxygen supply, causing elevated oxidative stress, systemic inflammation, and changes in neural and neurobehavioral functioning, said the researchers. Also, no children in the study who had been breastfed for at least 12 months developed persistent snoring, unlike those breastfed for less than a month or never. The act of breastfeeding may help develop a more robust upper-airway structure, or breast milk may provide immunologic protection against infections that promote snoring, suggested the authors.

Read more about sleep disorders in children in Psychiatric News here.

(Image: Olena Kryzhanovska/Shutterstock.com)