For years parents and educators
have known that many teens do not get enough sleep to meet their health needs. Now
there is a new culprit: their smart phones.
Parents may be unaware that
many teens sleep with their smart phones by their side, answering calls or text
messaging throughout the night.
Research has documented that,
on average, teenagers have traditionally gotten about two hours less sleep every
night than they need. This increases their risk of accidents and makes them
moody.
In the past, this was caused by
teens generally staying up too late and waking too early for the needs of their
bodies. But these figures were calculated BEFORE the prevalence of smart
phones.
According to research, teen
bodies need nine hours and fifteen minutes of sleep per night. Prior to the
advent of smart phones as bedmates, teens were getting an average of only seven
hours of sleep per night. Now the numbers are far lower.
And fitful sleep, in short
bursts, is not as healthful as uninterrupted sleep, so the health implications
are far more grave than ever.
For example, of the estimated
100,000 car crashes a year linked to drowsy driving, almost half involve
drivers age 16-24, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
What’s more, like all of us, teens get more emotional when they are
sleep-deprived.
The best thing a parent can do
to help teens get the sleep they need is to make sure there is no smart phone
by their side when they go to bed. Period. Turn it off and take it away. It’s
good parenting.
