The Science of Lost Sleep in Teens
March 28, 2006
A new poll of teenagers across the US finds that many of them
are losing out on quality of life because of a lack of sleep.
The results, announced today by the National Sleep Foundation
(NSF), cite sleeping in class, lack of energy to exercise, feelings
of depression, and driving while drowsy as only some of the consequences
for insufficient sleep.
The poll data support previous work by three Rhode Island researchers
who are at the forefront of sleep research. Previous studies from
Brown Medical School, and Lifespan affiliates Bradley Hospital
and Hasbro Children’s Hospital, have found that adolescents
are not getting enough sleep, and suggest that this can lead to
a number of physical and emotional impairments.
Mary Carskadon, PhD, with Bradley Hospital and Brown Medical
School, chaired the National Sleep Foundation poll taskforce and
has been a leading authority on teen sleep for more than a decade.
Her research on adolescent circadian rhythms indicates that the
internal clocks of adolescents undergo maturational changes making
them different from those of children or adults. Nevertheless,
teens must adhere to increasingly earlier school start times that
make it nearly impossible for them to get enough sleep.
“Our results show that the adage ‘early to bed, early
to rise’ presents a real challenge for adolescents,”
says Carskadon, who directs the Bradley Hospital Sleep and Chronobiology
Sleep Laboratory and is a professor of psychiatry and human behavior
at Brown Medical School.
Carskadon’s work has been instrumental in influencing school
start times across the country. Regionally, the North Kingstown
School Department in Rhode Island, North Reading Public Schools
in Massachusetts, and West Hartford Public Schools in Connecticut
are considering school start time changes due, in part, to research
on teens and sleep.
In a study published in the November 2005 issue of the journal
Sleep, Carskadon found that the “sleep pressure” rate—the
biological trigger that causes sleepiness—slows down in adolescence
and is one more explanation for why teens can’t fall asleep
until later at night. Carskadon’s newest finding indicates
that, in addition to the changes in their internal clocks, adolescents
experience slower sleep pressure, which may contribute to an overall
shift in teen sleep cycles to later hours.
Judy Owens, MD, a national authority on children and sleep, is
the director of the pediatric sleep disorders center at Hasbro
Children’s Hospital and an associate professor of pediatrics
at Brown Medical School. Her latest book, “Take Charge of
Your Child’s Sleep: The All-in-One Resource for Solving Sleep
Problems in Children and Teens,” is especially important
in light of the fact that 90% of the parents polled believed that
their adolescents were getting enough sleep during the week.
“This poll sends a clear message to parents: Teens are tired,”
says Owens. “Parents can help get a handle on the problem
by eliminating sleep stealers such as caffeinated drinks in the
fridge or a TV or computer in the teen’s bedroom as well
as enforcing reasonable bed times.”
Last June, a major report in the journal Pediatrics merged a
review of more than two decades of basic research with clinical
advice for physicians. Rhode Island authors included Carskadon,
Owens, and lead author, Richard Millman, MD, professor of medicine
at Brown Medical School and director of the Sleep Disorders Center
of Lifespan Hospitals, a Rhode Island sleep research and treatment
center that is one of the largest in the country.
The report indicated that adolescents aged 13 to 22 need nine
to 10 hours of sleep each night. It also discussed the hormonal
changes that conspire against them. When puberty hits, the body’s
production of sleep-inducing melatonin is delayed, making an early
bedtime biologically impossible for most teens. At the same time,
the report notes, external forces such as after-school sports
and jobs and early school start times put the squeeze on a full
night’s sleep.
The result: A “profound negative effect” on mood, school
performance and cognitive function. Studies also show that young
people between 16 and 29 years of age were the most likely to
be involved in crashes caused by the driver falling asleep.
“Some of our kids are literally sleep-walking through life,
with some potentially serious consequences,” Millman said.
“As clinicians and researchers, we know more now than ever
about the biological and behavioral issues that prevent kids from
getting enough sleep. But the National Sleep Foundation did something
powerful: They asked teens themselves about their sleep. The results
are startling and should be a wake-up call to any parent or pediatrician.”
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