Serious implications for teens who do not get enough sleep

Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital Boston examined data from 67,615  US high school students and found that teens who sleep less than 6 hours a night are more likely to drink alcohol, take drugs, drive under the influence, carry weapons, get into fights and attempt suicide.

Mathew Weaver, lead researcher explained, “We found the odds of unsafe behaviour by high school students increased significantly with fewer hours of sleep.  Personal risk taking behaviours are common precursors to accidents and suicides which are the leading causes of death among teens.” 

Teenagers need between 8 to 10 hours of sleep a night but currently it is estimated that only 30% of teenagers actually achieve this. 

NOTE:  Brigham and Women’s Hospital, located next to Harvard Medical School  is an international leader in virtually every area of medicine