Benefits of a Good Night's Sleep
We live in a sleep-deprived society. It may surprise you to learn that middle school students need an average of 10 hours of sleep every night, and high school students need 9 to 10 hours. Even many college students need to sleep at least 9 hours.* In my many years of medical practice I have rarely encountered a student who was getting enough sleep; most of my patients fall far short of their requirement. Sleep serves many important functions, including these:
Release of growth hormone (GH). GH promotes the growth of all tissues, including bone. This is what makes children and teens grow taller. In adults, GH helps maintain normal metabolism, brain and nervous system function, and bone structure.
Repair of damaged cells
Improves immunity (so you’re less likely to catch that cold that’s going around).
Getting enough sleep can help you do better in school. During sleep, memories are worked through and connected to each other. So all of that studying you did can be put to good use on the upcoming math exam. Or maybe you’re in the orchestra; your brain will work on that difficult passage you practiced while you sleep, so you’ll be able to remember it during the next rehearsal. An athlete might be able to remember all of the tips he or she got from the coach, and use them in the next game.
One of the things that makes it hard for teens and young adults to get enough sleep is the fact that around the time of puberty, there is a shift in the timing of melatonin release. The brain produces the hormone melatonin when it gets dark outside, and melatonin makes us feel sleepy. Most teens have a long delay from the time their brains detect darkness to the time they produce melatonin, so that it is difficult to fall asleep before around 11 p.m. Recognizing this, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that middle and high schools should start no earlier than 8:30 a.m., and the state of California tried to make this a law in 2018. State Senator Anthony Portantino reintroduced the bill, SB 328, in 2019.
You might be wondering whether you can just make up for lost sleep by sleeping late on the weekends. Unfortunately, the answer is no. While one night of short sleep can be made up the following night, you can’t accumulate a bunch of “sleep debt” and then just make it all up with one long sleep-in.
Now that you know how important sleep is, you might be interested in some ways to get more of it. Here are a few tips:
Don’t take “zero period” classes in high school. In college, try to have your first class start at 10 am or later, if possible.
If you can’t avoid one or more nights of short sleep and have to nap, try to do it as early in the day as possible, and limit your nap to 30 minutes. Otherwise, it may be hard to fall asleep at night.
Going for a walk outside in the morning or right after school in daylight will help regulate your sleep-wake cycle.
For even more tips, click here