Elsevier

Sleep Medicine

Volume 39, November 2017, Pages 47-53
Sleep Medicine

Original Article
Decreases in self-reported sleep duration among U.S. adolescents 2009–2015 and association with new media screen time

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2017.08.013Get rights and content

Highlights

  • More adolescents in 2015 (vs. 2009) slept less than 7 h a night on most nights.

  • Electronic device and social media use also increased in 2009–2015.

  • Electronic device and social media use increases the odds of short sleep duration.

  • Smartphones may be the cause of the increase in self-reported short sleep duration.

Abstract

Study objectives

Insufficient sleep among adolescents carries significant health risks, making it important to determine social factors that change sleep duration. We sought to determine whether the self-reported sleep duration of U.S. adolescents changed between 2009 and 2015 and examine whether new media screen time (relative to other factors) might be responsible for changes in sleep.

Methods

We drew from yearly, nationally representative surveys of sleep duration and time use among adolescents conducted since 1991 (Monitoring the Future) and 2007 (Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System of the Centers for Disease Control; total N = 369,595).

Results

Compared to 2009, adolescents in 2015 were 16%–17% more likely to report sleeping less than 7 h a night on most nights, with an increase in short sleep duration after 2011–2013. New media screen time (electronic device use, social media, and reading news online) increased over this time period and was associated with increased odds of short sleep duration, with a clear exposure–response relationship for electronic devices after 2 or more hours of use per day. Other activities associated with short sleep duration, such as homework time, working for pay, and TV watching, were relatively stable or reduced over this time period, making it unlikely that these activities caused the sudden increase in short sleep duration.

Conclusions

Increased new media screen time may be involved in the recent increases (from 35% to 41% and from 37% to 43%) in short sleep among adolescents. Public health interventions should consider electronic device use as a target of intervention to improve adolescent health.

Section snippets

Research purpose

In the current study, we aimed to examine temporal trends in self-reported short sleep duration (sleeping less than 7 h on most nights) up to 2015 in two large, nationally representative samples of U.S. adolescents conducted since 1991: Monitoring the Future: A Continuing Study of American Youth (MtF) [20], [21] and the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) [22]. Given the size and representative nature of these

Sample

The Monitoring the Future (MtF) survey, funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, collects nationally representative samples of 8th, 10th, and 12th graders (see http://www.monitoringthefuture.org). All procedures of the survey are annually reviewed and approved by the University of Michigan Institutional Review Board. The participation rate of schools is between 66% and 80%, and the student participation rate is between 79% and 83% [24]. About 15,000 students in each grade are sampled

Results

The number of adolescents getting insufficient sleep abruptly increased after 2011–2013. By 2015, more than 40% of adolescents did not get 7 or more hours of sleep on most nights across both datasets (see Fig. 1). Between 2009 and 2015, 16%–17% more adolescents reported insufficient sleep (with increases from 35% to 41% in MtF and from 37% to 43% in YRBSS). This is in addition to the previously reported increase in short sleep duration since 1991, when only 26% of adolescents got insufficient

Discussion

More U.S. adolescents in recent years failed to get 7 or more hours of sleep on most nights, with an abrupt increase in short sleep duration after 2011–2013. By 2015, more than 40% of adolescents reported getting insufficient sleep. Most research suggests that adolescents ages 12 to –17 require an average of 9 h a night of sleep. Thus, more adolescents are sleep deprived.

New media screen time (including reported use of electronic devices, social media, and reading news online) significantly

Conclusion

The last decade witnessed unprecedented shifts in the adoption and use of new electronic media devices, especially among children and adolescents. Scientific evidence on the impact of this technology is only now accumulating, and the findings presented here implicate the use of electronic devices and new media in abrupt and significant decreases in sleep time. Both individuals and institutions should consider ways to mitigate the unwanted effects of electronic devices on sleep and health.

References (29)

  • N.D. Barlett et al.

    Sleep as a mediator of screen time effects on US children's health outcomes

    J Child Media

    (2012)
  • M. Hysing et al.

    Sleep and use of electronic devices in adolescence: results from a large population-based study

    BMJ Open

    (2015)
  • J.A. Leech

    Changes in sleep duration and recreational screen time among Canadians, 1998-2010

    J Sleep Res

    (2017)
  • B. Carter et al.

    Association between portable screen-based media device access or use and sleep outcomes

    JAMA Pediatr

    (2016)
  • Cited by (149)

    • Digital media and mental health in adolescent athletes

      2023, Psychology of Sport and Exercise
    View all citing articles on Scopus
    View full text