With the start of school this fall, many teenagers returned to their sleep-deprived, “overbooked, overstressed and overworked” lifestyles. But sleep is food for the brain, and is especially vital for teens who are being asked to stay focused on learning for hour upon hour. Frank Coletta, MD — South Nassau Communities Hospital’s co-director of pulmonary medicine and respiratory therapy, and co-director of its Center for Sleep Medicine — offers tips to parents on guiding teens to improve their sleep habits.
Teens actually need more than nine hours of sleep each night. But most teens do not get enough — in one study, only 15 percent of teens reported sleeping eight 1/2 hours on school nights. Teens tend to have irregular sleep patterns across the week, especially on busier homework and activity nights and on weekends, which can affect their biological clocks and hurt the quality of their sleep. Also, teens’ natural sleep cycle puts them in conflict with early school start times, putting additional importance on good sleep habits.
“During sleep, a restorative state, the body’s ‘batteries’ recharge. Inadequate sleep can not only limit the ability to learn, listen, concentrate and solve problems, but also lead to aggressive or inappropriate behavior, impact healthy eating habits and contribute to illnesses. Perhaps most important is that older teens who drive must be alert and attentive behind the wheel,” says Coletta.
Coletta offers the following tips to parents, so they can help their teenagers improve sleep habits and avoid some of the negative impacts of inadequate sleep:
• Make sleep a priority. Make a bed- and wake-time plan and stick to it as much as possible, even on weekends. Not only will the teen get more beneficial sleep, but it should be easier to fall asleep at a regular bedtime.
• Make time-management changes in order to get to bed on time, which means not only organizing homework, but nighttime school and sports activities, and even downtime. Sometimes the answer is to simply cut out or skip some activities.
• Establish an “off” time for the computer and electronic devices, as teens can spend extra hours into the night surfing, texting and viewing instead of sleeping. Ideally, computer gaming activity should cease at least two hours before bedtime.
• Avoid eating, drinking, or exercising within a few hours of bedtime. Stick to quiet, calm activities, and falling asleep will be easier.
“Parents should set a sleep plan when their kids are young, and be consistent about following it as their children grow older. Helping their pre-teens with good sleep habits will make it easier to sustain healthy patterns through the teen years,” advises Coletta.
South Nassau’s Center for Sleep Medicine is accredited by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. The Center combines standard-setting patient accommodations and amenities with leading-edge sleep medicine technologies to diagnose and treat disruptive sleep disorders, including sleep apnea. It assists patients in getting to the root of their sleep problems.
The Center offers comfortable, hotel-like rooms for overnight testing, complete with a private bath and shower, queen-size bed and cable television. Its staff features experienced, highly-skilled sleep medicine specialists who are board-certified with intensive training in diagnosing and treating sleep disorders.
South Nassau’s Center for Sleep Medicine [1420 Broadway at Erick Avenue in Hewlett, NY (516) 374-8830].
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Improving Sleep Habits for Teens
South Nassau Communities Hospital offers tips
to help parents guide teens on how to improve their sleep habits
With the start of school this fall, many teenagers returned to their sleep-deprived “overbooked, overstressed and overworked” lifestyles. But sleep is food for the brain, and is especially vital for teens who are being asked to stay focused on learning for hour upon hour. Frank Coletta, MD, South Nassau Communities Hospital’s co-director of pulmonary medicine & respiratory therapy and co-director of its Center for Sleep Medicine, offers tips to parents on guiding teens to improve their sleep habits.
Teens actually need more than nine hours of sleep each night. But most teens do not get enough – in one study, only 15 percent of teens reported sleeping 8 1/2 hours on school nights. Teens tend to have irregular sleep patterns across the week, especially on busier homework and activity nights and on weekends, which can affect their biological clocks and hurt the quality of their sleep. Also, teens’ natural sleep cycle puts them in conflict with early school start times, putting additional importance on good sleep habits.
“During sleep, a restorative state, the body’s “batteries” recharge. Inadequate sleep can not only limit the ability to learn, listen, concentrate and solve problems, but also lead to aggressive or inappropriate behavior, impact healthy eating habits and contribute to illnesses. Perhaps most important is that older teens who drive must be alert and attentive behind the wheel,” said Dr. Coletta.
Dr. Coletta offers the following tips to parents so they can help their teenagers improve sleep habits and avoid some of the negative impacts of inadequate sleep:
Make sleep a priority — make a bed and wake-time plan and stick to it as much as possible, even on weekends. Not only will the teen get more beneficial sleep, but it should be easier to fall asleep at a regular bedtime.
Make time-management changes in order to get to bed on time, which means not only organizing homework, but nighttime school and sports activities, and even downtime. Sometimes the answer is to simply cut out or skip some activities.
Establish an “off” time for the computer and electronic devices as teens can spend extra hours into the night surfing, texting and viewing instead of sleeping. Ideally, computer gaming activity should cease at least two hours before bedtime.
Avoid eating, drinking, or exercising within a few hours of bedtime. Stick to quiet, calm activities, and falling asleep will be easier.
“Parents should set a sleep plan when their kids are young and be consistent about following it as their children grow older. Helping their pre-teens with good sleep habits will make it easier to sustain healthy patterns through the teen years,” said Dr. Coletta.
South Nassau’s Center for Sleep Medicine, located at 1420 Broadway in Hewlett, NY, is accredited by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. The Center combines standard-setting patient accommodations and amenities with leading-edge sleep medicine technologies to diagnose and treat disruptive sleep disorders, including sleep apnea. It assists patients in getting to the root of their sleep problems. It offers comfortable, hotel-like rooms for overnight testing, complete with a private bath and shower, queen-size bed and cable television. In addition to Dr. Coletta, its staff features experienced, highly skilled sleep medicine specialists who are board certified with intensive training in diagnosing and treating sleep disorders.
If you feel that you experience symptoms typical of sleep disorders and would like to schedule an evaluation, call South Nassau’s Center for Sleep Medicine at (516) 374-8830.
