Sleeping behavior of teenagers

Adolescence is a period of growth and requires energy to carry out many activities. According to the study, approximately 15 percent of adolescents need more sleep than the general population. Lack of sleep can cause adolescents to face problems with health, safety, performance, learning ability, and may cause fatigue or drowsiness during the day.

Teens need 8-10 hours of sleep each night. Research shows that about 15 percent of teens get less than 8.5 hours of sleep on school days. Teens often have irregular sleep patterns, staying up late on weekends, and are more likely to experience sleep disorders such as narcolepsy, insomnia, restless legs syndrome, and sleep apnea. Several studies have found that insufficient sleep contributes to negative behaviors in teens, such as defiant behavior, stress, depression, being overweight, and being more likely to smoke.

For teenagers, the natural sleep cycle starts later than usual and wakes up later than other age groups, which is partly due to the changing production of hormones in teenagers. In adults, the brain produces melatonin around 9 p.m. and remains in the bloodstream for about 12 hours before gradually decreasing until 9 a.m. when the melatonin level in the body decreases. However, studies have found that in teenagers, melatonin is produced about 1 hour later than usual. When waking up in the morning, it may make you feel groggy, drowsy, and lack of concentration.

Signs Your Teen Isn't Getting Enough Sleep

• Difficulty walking in the morning

• Feeling irritable in the morning

• Feeling sleepy during the day

• Sleep in late on the weekend

• Poor concentration or difficulty remembering things

• Waking up frequently and having difficulty falling back to sleep

Staying up late has become a common thing for young people nowadays and it has also been found that exposure to the light from electronic screens, especially the blue light emitted from smartphones, tablets and other electronic devices, because the blue light can interfere with the natural sleep pattern of humans, especially in children and teenagers.

Teens who spend more than four hours a day in front of a screen fall asleep an average of 30 minutes later than those who spend less than one hour a day in front of a screen. This is because blue light suppresses the release of melatonin, a hormone that regulates the body's sleep cycle. Although there are now improvements to filter out blue light at night, it is better to avoid or be exposed to screens that emit blue light.

Ways to help teens get enough sleep include creating a bedroom that is conducive to sleep and is quiet, setting appropriate sleep and wake times, doing activities that help you feel relaxed before bed, and limiting screen time. Screen time should be avoided at least 30 minutes before bedtime.
Poor sleeping habits, including staying up late, are health problems for teenagers. They may cause fatigue or drowsiness during the day or may lead to various diseases. Therefore, sleeping habits should be adjusted to be appropriate by arranging the bedroom to have a suitable and quiet sleeping atmosphere. Choose pillows and mattresses that are appropriate for the body's physiology and find light activities that help you relax before going to bed, which is another way to help you fall asleep more easily.