Is Your Teen Sleep-Deprived?
March 2, 2021
Many teens tend to stay up late. They’re on social media, watching television or YouTube, studying, or just tossing and turning for hours unable to fall asleep. Sleep can also be disrupted during stressful times during adolescence like exams or relationship problems.
More than two-thirds of high school students in the U.S. are failing to get sufficient sleep on school nights, according to a recent study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) recommends that teens should sleep eight to 10 hours per night on a regular basis to promote optimal health,” explains Virginia Skiba, M.D., a sleep specialist with the Henry Ford Health System. Insufficient sleep can have a negative impact on their grades, athletic performance and mental and physical well-being, including depression and anxiety issues and drug and alcohol use.
It’s a safety issue, as well. Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of teen deaths in the U.S. In a recent survey, more than half of teens admitted to having driven when feeling too tired and nearly one in 10 teens reported having fallen asleep at the wheel.
A typical high school student is biologically wired to fall asleep around 11 p.m. Many high schools in Michigan start school as early as 7 a.m. – long before a teen’s natural wake time. The AASM advocates a later middle school and high school start time of 8:30 a.m. or later.
Tips for a Good Night’s Sleep
Teenagers’ sleep-wake cycles are biologically determined – they are programmed to stay up late at night and sleep later in the morning. Most teens are instinctively night owls. Falling asleep is often a challenge, but there are things teens can do that may help them get a good night’s sleep.
Here are some tips from Dr. Skiba, which apply not only to teens but are great advice for anyone who is struggling with feeling sleep deprived:
► First and foremost, make sleep a priority. In our busy society, too often making time for sleep is last on the list.
► Maintain a consistent bedtime and wake time that allows at least eight hours of nightly sleep, including on weekends and vacation.
► Keep the bedroom quiet and dark. Keep the TV, computer, phone and video game system out of the bedroom.
► Set a technology curfew; turn off all devices one hour before bedtime.
► Engage in quiet activities before bed, like reading, journaling or yoga, and establish a relaxing bedtime ritual.
Dr. Virginia Skiba is a sleep medicine expert who sees patients at Henry Ford Medical Centers in Grosse Pointe and Sterling Heights.
If your teen is struggling with sleep issues, talk to your pediatrician or family doctor to find out if he or she could benefit from a sleep evaluation. Call 1-800-HENRYFORD (436-7936) or visit henryford.com to learn more.
Visit henryford.com/sports or call (313) 972-4216.
Minding Our Business: Focus on Mental Health
December 30, 2019
By Mark Uyl
MHSAA Executive Director
For as long as I can remember, rules have played an important role in my life.
My father officiated high school and youth sports. So my brother and I did the same, and were fortunate enough to earn the right to work contests at the collegiate level. Today, my sons are officiating high school and youth sports.
I was hired by the MHSAA as an assistant director in large part due to my officiating background. Rules and regulations remain the backbone of athletics specifically, and society in general, as I learned more acutely when I entered the working world as a teacher and coach, then school administrator.
What also became abundantly clear to me within that framework was that it is our responsibility to provide our students not only the opportunity for competition, but also for our games and practices to take place under the safest conditions possible. From preseason physicals to equipment inventory and facility maintenance, a premium was placed on the well-being of participants and spectators.
Throughout my time at the MHSAA, various initiatives continued to target the growing list of health and safety concerns. My predecessor, Jack Roberts, often pointed to the “4 Hs” of the MHSAA’s health and safety campaign: Health Histories (Physicals), Heat and Hydration, Heads, and Hearts. Those pillars still hold the bulk of the content and resources on the Health & Safety resource pages of MHSAA.com. A few years ago, an extensive section promoting multi-sport participation was developed as an increasing amount of overuse injuries among single-sport athletes was being reported.
This fall, another section has been added as a sub-category to “Heads.” While attending an NCAA meeting in the summer of 2017, the topic of concussions came up, which I assumed to be the No. 1 issue concerning health and safety of student-athletes. It was quickly pointed out that student mental health – not concussions – had become the top health concern among our young people. That knocked me back.
Medical personnel have determined that depression, anxiety and other issues related to mental health are the No. 1 concern among adolescent-age children. There’s a real opportunity to provide some leadership and guidance in this area.
We need to offer resources on the subject, and also be prepared to provide guidance for our membership. The MHSAA has developed a Mental Health Speakers Bureau (please visit our Health & Safety page online). The first statewide Student Mental Health Summit scheduled for Lansing in October provided an opportunity for school principals, counselors, student leadership advisers and student leaders to convene on the topic.
The gathering was quickly sold out, indicating not only the growing nature of concern for this issue, but once again displaying the willingness of our educational leaders to recognize and react to another challenge.
This week, Second Half will publish the latest benchmarks report on the MHSAA’s mental health initiatives and those being undertaken by other states as well.