A 2015 Stanford Medical School article examines this very crisis. The article states that sleep is vital to one’s health because it plays a major function in cognitive development and behavior (Richter). The author explains that while one is asleep, the body itself is at rest, but the brain is full of action. It is believed that during this time, important events are underway. Sleep has been found to regulate emotion, behavior, store memories, and to allow the body to heal. Not obtaining the correct amount of sleep can lead to issues such as anxiety, depression, general sickness, thoughts of suicide, and even suicide attempts in young adults. The effects of the long-term sleep depression commonly found in high schools are something that should
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Although teen suicide has begun to receive more attention from the public over the past decade, it is still an unaddressed topic in many families and communities. This is surprising, as the CDC reports that suicide is the third leading cause of death among youth between the ages of 10 and 24 (“Suicide Prevention”). Each year, 4,600 lives are lost in this age group to suicide, which equates to about one death every two hours. Some groups are at a higher risk for suicide, with 81% of the deaths each year attributed to boys and 19% to girls (“Suicide Prevention”). Imagine how these numbers would change if all of the lost teens had been able to receive a good night’s rest, every night. When the pressures of life start to weigh heavy on a teen, a lack of sleep — and therefore proven lack of mental clarity — interrupts logical thinking processes and leads to reckless decision-making. Unfortunately, some kids do make that wrong decision, and the aftermath can tear apart a …show more content…
A 2009 to 2011 study in South Korea sought to establish a clear link between sleep and academic performance. After recruiting subjects from eight high schools and five middle schools in South Korea, the researchers found that a demonstrated lack of sleep among adolescents is “associated with poor academic performance and that sleep debt, as represented by weekend oversleep, predicts poorer academic performance” (Lee). This report shows not only that sleep directly affects students’ grades and classroom success, but also that sleep deprivation is an issue that extends far beyond American classrooms. The study clearly shows how it is not simply an American behavior for students to stay up
Although teen suicide has begun to receive more attention from the public over the past decade, it is still an unaddressed topic in many families and communities. This is surprising, as the CDC reports that suicide is the third leading cause of death among youth between the ages of 10 and 24 (“Suicide Prevention”). Each year, 4,600 lives are lost in this age group to suicide, which equates to about one death every two hours. Some groups are at a higher risk for suicide, with 81% of the deaths each year attributed to boys and 19% to girls (“Suicide Prevention”). Imagine how these numbers would change if all of the lost teens had been able to receive a good night’s rest, every night. When the pressures of life start to weigh heavy on a teen, a lack of sleep — and therefore proven lack of mental clarity — interrupts logical thinking processes and leads to reckless decision-making. Unfortunately, some kids do make that wrong decision, and the aftermath can tear apart a …show more content…
A 2009 to 2011 study in South Korea sought to establish a clear link between sleep and academic performance. After recruiting subjects from eight high schools and five middle schools in South Korea, the researchers found that a demonstrated lack of sleep among adolescents is “associated with poor academic performance and that sleep debt, as represented by weekend oversleep, predicts poorer academic performance” (Lee). This report shows not only that sleep directly affects students’ grades and classroom success, but also that sleep deprivation is an issue that extends far beyond American classrooms. The study clearly shows how it is not simply an American behavior for students to stay up