The study has a so-called randomized controlled crossover method, which means that all the children have tested both a weighted blanket and a control blanket for four weeks each. The order was randomly generated. Sleep was objectively measured with actigraphs (sleep watches) that the children wore during the night. Data from the actigraphs were analyzed along with information from a daily sleep diary as well as questionnaires that both children and parents filled out.
The results show that the use of weighted blankets improved the total sleep time for the entire group of children and the greatest improvement was shown for children aged 11–14 years. Another significant result of this study was that it was shown that the weighted blanket effectively reduced the number of awakenings during the night and improved sleep efficiency (Lönn et al., 2023a).
Difficulty settling down in the evening and awakenings at night are the most common sleep disorders in children with ADHD, which underlines the relevance of the results. If children’s restlessness and subsequent sleep problems decrease during the evening and night, the whole family may experience improved functioning and general well-being. Improved child and family function when using weighted blankets confirmed in interviews with children
(Lönn et al., 2023b) and parents (Larsson et al., 2021).
In summary, the randomized controlled trial shows that weighted blanket use effectively improves overall sleep time, reduces the number of awakenings, and improves overall sleep efficiency in children with ADHD. In addition, the results showed that the weighted blanket was particularly beneficial for children aged 11–14 years.
