Children who suffer frequent nightmares and night terrors may be at risk of serious mental health problems in adolescence, researchers have warned.
Experts at Warwick University and King’s College, London, UK, say it is normal for young children to suffer nightmares and night terrors.
But their research suggests that children who continue to suffer large numbers of nightmares face a 56% increase in risk of experiencing psychotic experiences in their teenage years.
The findings come from an analysis of information collected by a major study of children born in the 1990s in the Bristol region of England and reported in the journal Sleep.
Researchers think the connection may suggest that large numbers of nightmares could indicate the onset of mental health problems in some children. It is also possible that disturbed sleep contributes to later problems.
Researcher Professor Dieter Wolke said: "We certainly don’t want to worry parents with this news; three in every four children experience nightmares at this young age.
"However, nightmares over a prolonged period or bouts of night terrors that persist into adolescence can be an early indicator of something more significant in later life."
Fellow researcher Dr Helen Fisher said: "The best advice is to try to maintain a lifestyle that promotes healthy sleep hygiene for your child, by creating an environment that allows for the best possible quality of sleep."
The research was welcomed by the teen mental health charity YoungMinds.
Its director of campaigns Lucie Russell said: "This is a very important study because anything that we can do to promote early identification of signs of mental illness is vital to help the thousands of children that suffer.
"Early intervention is crucial to help avoid children suffering entrenched mental illness when they reach adulthood."
Sleep 28 February 2014
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