A poll to be released today from the National Sleep Foundation confirms that teens are staying up too late and waking up too early. The term 'zombie' is a pretty accurate description. Carskadon had 222 students in grades nine through 12 wear monitors for a week. That's seven hours and 15 minutes of sleep a night. For optimal functioning, teens need nine hours and 15 minutes of sleep a night, although realistically they can function on eight hours and 15 minutes, Carskadon says.
Sleep deprivation is a serious matter for teens.
Of the estimated 100,000 car crashes a year linked to drowsy driving, almost half involve drivers ages 15 to 24, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. I'm tired of reading about dead teenagers killed at the prime of their lives due to falling asleep driving. The traffic administration and National Center on Sleep Disorders Research are addressing that concern with a campaign to try to make teens aware of the dangers of driving when drowsy. Experts, parents and teachers are troubled by this sleep deprivation among adolescents for other reasons too. Students who are tired are more likely to doze off in class and are less able to concentrate, learn and solve problems.