Sleep is one of the factors that is most affected by this transformation. On the one hand, at this stage of life it is necessary to sleep more hours. However, as a rule teenagers take longer to get tired by the day and the onset of nighttime sleep comes later. In addition, at these ages boys and girls begin to go out with their friends at night, which also interferes with a sufficient and regular sleep pattern.
According to sleep experts, teenagers should sleep at least nine hours a day to ensure good physical and mental development. According to the data, very few boys and girls in these ages comply with this recommendation.
In any case, it must be taken into account that poor sleep hygiene has very negative consequences on the physical and cognitive development of people. In fact, it is proven that adolescents who sleep worse or less hours have worse academic performance and, in general, have less healthy habits than their counterparts who rest more and better at night.
What happens if they don't sleep
The consequences of lack of nighttime sleep are very similar in the adolescent population with respect to adulthood. Daytime tiredness, lack of reflexes, difficulties concentrating, bad mood, problems living together, tendency to eat compulsively and gain weight ...
The fundamental difference with respect to adults is that adolescents do not usually adequately compensate for lack of sleep during the previous days, since precisely the weekend is when they go out at night with their friends. In this way, they only have Sunday to try to overcome the accumulated fatigue.
This day is usually not easy to recover, because if they sleep too much and get up near noon or directly at lunchtime they will not be sleepy at night, they will go back to bed late and be tired in the morning. If this process is repeated or prolonged too much, it is practically impossible to restore a regular sleep pattern.
Tips for teens to sleep better
Regularity . With the logical variations of weekends and holidays, the best thing for good sleep hygiene is to get up and go to bed always, more or less, at the same time.
Caffeine . Energy drinks, cola, coffee, tea ... have a high caffeine content that interferes with sleep. It is convenient to limit your consumption, especially in the afternoon and at night.
Out screens. The use of screens in the hours before going to sleep is counterproductive with sleep. Given the constant use made by adolescents of these new technologies, this is, in the opinion of specialists, one of the most important points when preserving the population's sleep in this age group.
For that reason, they recommend not using electronic devices before bedtime. Moreover, experts advise not to put them in the bedroom, since the light emitted by the backlit screens is enough to reveal us.
There are other general measures to improve the quality of sleep, regardless of age, which also do great for teenagers, such as sports (but not late in the afternoon or at night), avoid long naps (not sleeping more than 30 minutes during the day) and create a pleasant environment that induces to fall asleep; a well ventilated room, comfortable clothes, soft lights, no noise ... and use the bedroom to sleep, not to play the console or watch TV before going to bed.
During adolescence a series of hormonal, physical, social, emotional and psychological changes take place that completely alter the behavior and habits of boys and girls in this age group.
Sleep is one of the factors that is most affected by this transformation. On the one hand, at this stage of life it is necessary to sleep more hours. However, as a rule teenagers take longer to get tired by the day and the onset of nighttime sleep comes later. In addition, at these ages boys and girls begin to go out with their friends at night, which also interferes with a sufficient and regular sleep pattern.
According to sleep experts, teenagers should sleep at least nine hours a day to ensure good physical and mental development. According to the data, very few boys and girls in these ages comply with this recommendation.
In any case, it must be taken into account that poor sleep hygiene has very negative consequences on the physical and cognitive development of people. In fact, it is proven that adolescents who sleep worse or less hours have worse academic performance and, in general, have less healthy habits than their counterparts who rest more and better at night.
What happens if they don't sleep
The consequences of lack of nighttime sleep are very similar in the adolescent population with respect to adulthood. Daytime tiredness, lack of reflexes, difficulties concentrating, bad mood, problems living together, tendency to eat compulsively and gain weight ...The fundamental difference with respect to adults is that adolescents do not usually adequately compensate for lack of sleep during the previous days, since precisely the weekend is when they go out at night with their friends. In this way, they only have Sunday to try to overcome the accumulated fatigue.
This day is usually not easy to recover, because if they sleep too much and get up near noon or directly at lunchtime they will not be sleepy at night, they will go back to bed late and be tired in the morning. If this process is repeated or prolonged too much, it is practically impossible to restore a regular sleep pattern.
Tips for teens to sleep better
Regularity . With the logical variations of weekends and holidays, the best thing for good sleep hygiene is to get up and go to bed always, more or less, at the same time.Caffeine . Energy drinks, cola, coffee, tea ... have a high caffeine content that interferes with sleep. It is convenient to limit your consumption, especially in the afternoon and at night.
Out screens. The use of screens in the hours before going to sleep is counterproductive with sleep. Given the constant use made by adolescents of these new technologies, this is, in the opinion of specialists, one of the most important points when preserving the population's sleep in this age group.
For that reason, they recommend not using electronic devices before bedtime. Moreover, experts advise not to put them in the bedroom, since the light emitted by the backlit screens is enough to reveal us.
There are other general measures to improve the quality of sleep, regardless of age, which also do great for teenagers, such as sports (but not late in the afternoon or at night), avoid long naps (not sleeping more than 30 minutes during the day) and create a pleasant environment that induces to fall asleep; a well ventilated room, comfortable clothes, soft lights, no noise ... and use the bedroom to sleep, not to play the console or watch TV before going to bed.
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