Poor sleep affects teen health
A study from University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) has warned that teenagers who experience sleep problems are more reactive to stress, which could affect academic, behavioural and health.
Insufficient sleep and sleep problems contribute to cognitive problems, emotional difficulties and poor physical health over time. This is possibly due to disruptions in a key part of the neuroendocrine system that controls reactions to stress and regulates many processes, namely, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis).
Researchers at the UAB explored the relationship between sleep and reactivity to stress, specifically as it relates to HPA axis activity, in teenagers.
The researchers examined two dimensions of sleep:
- its duration and problems from the perspectives of teenagers and parents.
- cortisol levels before and after social stress.
It was also noted that there was higher cortisol release in females than in males signifying greater negative health effects (like dampened thyroid function, decreased bone density, decreased muscle mass, sugar and blood pressure imbalances, lowered immune function, slow wound healing, increased abdominal fat, etc.).
Cortisol is a life sustaining adrenal hormone essential to the maintenance of homeostasis (ability of the body to keep its parameters within normal range). Also called as ‘the stress hormone,’ cortisol influences, regulates or modulates many of the changes that occur in the body in response to stress.
Earlier studies had shown that poor sleep in teenagers causes difficulties in school, including disciplinary problems, sleepiness in class and poor concentration.
In this modern era of social media, it is important that teenagers learn to manage their time and sleep at least 7 hours daily to prevent adverse effect on their health that could have long-term implications.
