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Major bedtime mistake that's wreaking havoc on teens' sleep
New York Post • • health
Key Points:
- Teens require up to 11 hours of sleep nightly to support brain and body development, significantly more than adults, and chronic sleep loss can increase stress, anxiety, depression, and impair decision-making.
- New research using smartphone apps and Fitbits shows that late-night phone use delays sleep onset and reduces total sleep time, with every 30 minutes on the phone after 10 p.m. resulting in nearly 13 minutes less sleep.
- Social media platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Snapchat are the primary sources of late-night phone activity, averaging 44 minutes after 8 p.m., and usage within five minutes of sleep onset leads to more disrupted sleep.
- Exposure to phone light and stimulating content before bed interferes with the brain’s natural sleep-wake cycle by signaling alertness, highlighting the importance of reducing phone use in the evening to improve sleep quality.
- Experts recommend encouraging teens to adopt calming bedtime routines such as reading, music, or relaxation exercises instead of phone use, focusing on positive habit-building rather than punitive measures.
