Too Much or Too Little Sleep: What is the Right Amount for Teenagers?

Sleep cycles of teenagers often create a conflict between adolescents and parents. For many parents, the sudden change in a child's sleeping pattern, while approaching and passing through adolescences, can lead to strained relationships during this already highly stressful period. As parents, understanding sleep pattern recommendations for teenagers, signs and warnings of sleep deprivation associated with sleeping disorders in teenagers and methods for improving sleep at home, will ensure a more pleasant transition through the adolescent period and into early adulthood.

Under normal sleeping patterns, the American Sleep Disorders Association advises teenagers require, at least, 9 ½ hours of sleep per night to ensure proper hormonal development and cognitive function. While this is the recommendation from professionals in sleep studies the fact remains that many American teenagers are obtaining far less sleep although parents of these same teenagers would probably argue differently. This conflict in opinion, with regard to proper amounts of sleep time, may, inadvertently, lead to sleep disorders in the teenager as they progress through crucial hormonal period.

While parents of teenagers work diligently to provide food and shelter, often getting less than six hours of sleep per night, the seeming excessive sleep habits of teenagers can often create conflict between the parents and the teenager. However, for proper child growth and development, it is imperative that parents, to some degree, monitor a teenager's sleeping habits to ensure, as best as possible, the teen obtains the full 9 ½ hours of sleep recommended and is not, instead, suffering from a sleep disorder. So, how do parents know if a teenager is receiving enough sleep?

With teenagers biologically and emotionally requiring 9 ½ hours of sleep per night, parents should permit, as best as possible, at least this number of hours of sleep on a continuous, uninterrupted basis. For teenagers who are sleeping less than 9 ½ hours, signs of sleep deprivation may include, primarily, poor academic performance which may be attributed to the inability of the teenager to concentrate, coupled with signs of frustration and even eating disorders; all of which are common in teens who are sleep deprived.

Beyond sleep deprivation, parents who are concerned about a teenager's sleeping patterns should also remain aware of the possibility of the teen obtaining too much sleep. Unfortunately, sleeping too much is more commonly a concern of parents over sleep deprivation. In fact, parents commonly assume a teenager is lazy, depressed or even involved in activities such as alcohol or drug use, especially when sleeping habits appear to be excessive. However, the teen that sleeps 9 ½ hours per day is considered normal and is, in most cases, not experiencing a co morbid condition. That is not to say that parents should not be in tune with the teenager's sleep pattern as sleeping greater than 10 hours per day may be an indicator of an underlying, co morbid condition of concern.

To encourage healthy sleep activity in a teenager, at home, parents can provide healthy living guidance ensuring the teenager is provided with a good nutritional foundation, including a balance of protein, fruits and vegetables. In addition to diet, parents are encouraged to educate the teen in areas of fitness, exercise and to avoid the eating late night meals and snacks. With proper education at home, coupled with parents who practice healthy living lifestyles, teenagers are provided with a foundation on which to build healthy sleeping patterns.

As with any child related concern, consult a healthcare professional should sleeping patterns of the teenager appear irregular, including too much, too little or sporadic sleeping periods as these may be indication of the development into a life impacting sleep disorder in the teen.