Everyone wants to know why America’s teens aren’t getting enough sleep.

Is it because school start times should be delayed to better represent adolescent sleep patterns? That could be part of the reason, but a new study shows another big factor, as well.

JFK Medical Center is studying sleep patterns in teens and has found that texting is a big reason teens are going to school tired.

"The one-year study in Edison school district showed that over 60 percent of students are not getting enough sleep because of late night texting or phone use, and 20 to 25 percent are awakened from their sleep responding to texts,” according to NJTV News. 

Unfortunately, this lack of sleep is not harmless. According to sleep disorder specialist Dr. Peter Polos, teens need to take advantage of normal sleep patterns.

"The sleep deprivation is causing problems with brain development and academic performance for adolescents in their prime for growth,” the article said.

Further research needs to be done to definitively say what kind of long-term effects are caused by continued sleep deprivation in adolescence. But doctors say all-night tech use could have serious implications, even if just taking into consideration the fact that old habits die hard.

“They say we need to curb this now in the teenage years because those habits tend to trickle over as an adult.”

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Article by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

12/31/2015