Is Your Teen Getting Enough Sleep?

on June 1, 2009 at 4:08 PM

teens consuming coffee A new study in Pediatrics finds that instead of sleeping, more and more teens are consuming caffeine and "multitasking" at all hours of the night (which is defined as using technology such as texting, Web surfing, watching TV, gaming, etc.). Even more worrisome, the study shows that adolescents who stay awake and multitask the most were more likely to fall asleep during school—anywhere from two to eight times a day!

Experts say teens need at least nine hours of sleep a night; but the study found that the average teen gets only seven hours. Because teens who fall asleep during school are at risk for changes in academic performance, the report advises parents to keep TVs, cell phones, and computers out of teens' bedrooms and discourage teens from drinking caffeine after noon.

How many hours of sleep does your teen get a night?

About the author Kim Conte

has shoes that make people stop her on the street and ask "Where did you get those?" but it doesn't work for taxi cabs as she was hit by one ... and lived to tell the tale. She has more freckles than Lohan but way less attitude. And she's a fierce cook with tons of recipes to share -- and wishes she could share some with Bourdain.

Filed Under: behavior, sleep, teens

Comments (4)

usmom3

on Jun 1, 2009 at 9:18 PM

Mine gets about 10 hours of sleep a night but he has a schedule that any teen would love he goes to bed at 1:30am & gets up at 11:30am, we home school so he can do that.

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40yrmom

on Jun 1, 2009 at 10:06 PM

Our 17 year old does all that is mentioned in the article. He gets around 6 hrs a night. I had a couple of different docs tell me that a teen is a natural night-owl, and that school for high schoolers should be in the afternoon and not at 7:45 am. After 8 kids I really believe this, teachers I have talked to also believe it.

Selena

on Jun 2, 2009 at 12:30 AM

Roughly 8 hours.

For my kid, it works..and she's defenitly not an overtasker. The only reason she falls asleep in school is because the teacher is talking in a mono-tone.

And to 40yrmom - Not all high schoolers are like that. If perhaps they offered choices depending on what the kid does better in, that would be better. I know my kid would fall asleep far too often if it was in the afternoon and not the morning, she, like other kids, is more alert in the morning.

clovismommy25

on Jun 2, 2009 at 2:02 AM

Mine are still little, but I am only 20, when I was still a teen, I needed, and still need about 10 to 12 hrs of sleep. I would turn down going out with friends on the weekend, if I knew I wouldn't be albe to get enough (like for church) because I honestly could not function. I am so lucky my kids are the same way!!!