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Fact Sheet

SLEEP AND ADOLESCENT HEALTH:   FACT SHEET



“Many people view sleep as merely a 'down time' when their brain shuts off and their body rests.  But research reveals that a number of vital tasks carried out during sleep help to maintain good health and enable people to function at their best." U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

 

  • The drive to sleep is the most powerful biological urge.  Sleep is not optional.


  • Adequate sleep is essential for optimal functioning of the immune, metabolic, cardiovascular, and neurological systems.


  • Sleep needs do not decrease through adolescence.  This age group still needs the same 9- 10 hours of sleep per night that younger children do.


  • The brain’s prefrontal cortex (responsible for impulse control, planning, reasoning) completes its neurological connections during adolescence, a process that occurs predominantly during sleep.


  • Adolescent sleep patterns shift later, due to a delay in the secretion of melatonin (the hormone that induces drowsiness) and to psychosocial factors associated with this age group.


  • It is biologically impossible for a person to sleep more than he/she needs. Longer-than-average sleep is either catch-up for previous sleep deprivation, or the true expression of current sleep need.


  • When sleep is cut short in the morning, the body does not receive its full percentage of REM sleep.  REM sleep, during which brain waves are vigorous and dreams occur, is associated with the consolidation of memory and learning.



 

“Excessive sleepiness can have a profound negative effect on school performance, cognitive function, and mood and has been associated with other serious consequences such as increased incidence of automobile crashes.” American Academy of Pediatrics’ Working Group on Sleepiness in Adolescents/Young Adults



  • Sleep deprivation has been shown to impair creativity, abstract thinking, problem-solving, innovation, concentration, attention, decision-making, coordination, and motor response times.


  • It can cause irritability, moodiness, emotional instability, aggressiveness, and stress.


  • Sleep deprivation is cumulative.  Like a bank, regular deposits must be made to keep the balance current, and overdrawn accounts must be repaid.  Each night of insufficient sleep adds to the burden of this “sleep debt.”                                                                                                           
  • 77% of New Canaan high schoolers get 6 – 7 hours of sleep on school nights, according to the LWV surveys. With a 2-3 hour sleep deficit every night these high school students have 10 - 15 hours of accumulated sleep debt by Friday.


  • Sleep deprivation increases the likelihood of stimulant and alcohol use.


  • Sleep deprivation magnifies alcohol’s effects on the body, increasing the impairment of cognitive abilities and motor coordination.


  • 100,000 automobile accidents each year nationwide are caused by drowsy drivers.  55% of such crashes nationwide are caused by drivers 16 - 25 years old.


  • In a national poll, 5% of adolescent drivers said they nodded off or fell asleep at the wheel in past year.



 

“Given that the primary focus of education is to maximize human potential, then a new task before us is to ensure that the conditions in which learning takes place address the very biology of our learners.”

Mary A. Carskadon, PhD, Director of E.P. Bradley Hospital Research Laboratory and professor in Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at Brown University School of Medicine



  • In communities that have changed school start times, students are obtaining more sleep. Bedtimes remain virtually the same, but sleep is extended in the morning.


  • Wilton delayed start of middle and high schools from 7:35 to 8:15 three years ago.  Follow-up study shows that students are getting 35 minutes more sleep on school nights and they are not staying up later.


  • Individual schools or districts in 19 states have pushed back their start times, and more than 100 school districts in an additional 17 states are considering delaying their start times.


  • LWV survey results related to school start times:


  •  
    • Over 70% of 7thand 8th grade and high school parents in New Canaan are dissatisfied with current school schedules.
    • Opinion on changing start times from professional staff was mixed.
    • 85% of 7th and 8th grade parents and 84% of NCHS parents agreed that it would be acceptable for extracurricular activities to start and finish later.
    • 77% of 7th, 8th grades and NCHS parents agreed that it would be acceptable for athletes to arrive later but on time for regularly scheduled games.



For further information:

  • Email: sleepstudy@lwvnewcanaan.org
  • Visit: www.sleepfoundation.org.
  •    Obtain: “Your Guide to Healthy Sleep,” from www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/sleep/healthy_sleep.htm
  • See the League of Women Voters’ binders at the New Canaan Library reference desk.

 

 
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