Carskadon's meticulous research on the sleep habits of young people shows that as children enter their teens, a natural bedtime comes later and later. Trouble is, many school districts start classes as early as 7 a.m., which means some students have to be up by 5 to catch a 6 o'clock bus. A recent survey of 3,000 Providence high school students showed that 85 percent of them were getting inadequate sleep and were not alert when the first-period bell rang. Our work shows that teens can't adjust to schedules that go against what their body is telling them. The problem is more serious than just falling asleep in class.
Teens also fall asleep at the wheel.
Car crashes are the second leading cause of death in young people. Find ways to get more sleep. Parents need to be understanding of the sleep-in syndrome, but must also enforce some rules about rest. Keep lights and activities low in the evening hours to help settle down teenagers. By using this website, you accept the terms of our user agreement .