“Nearly 20% of teenagers have sleep disorders”, warns a sleep specialist

Sleep is an increasingly recurrent problem among teenagers: at the origin of physical and psychological disorders, sleeping well is essential. On this subject, the Maison des adolescents de Nantes is organizing a public lecture around adolescent sleep, on the occasion of the 23rd international sleep day on Friday 17 March. Dr. Laurene Leclair-Visonneau, sleep neurologist and head of the Nantes University Hospital Sleep Center, co-hosts this conference, entitled “Sleep: a story to sleep tall? “. For 20 Minutesshe explains the causes and consequences of poor sleep among teenagers.

Dr Leclair-Visonneau, neurologist, head of the Nantes University Hospital Sleep Center. – L. Leclair-Visonneau

Do teenagers sleep badly?

There are natural physiological changes in adolescence that naturally cause sleep relief. Teenagers have the impression of sleeping less well because their sleep is less heavy than before, we speak of sleep maturation. There is a significant percentage of teenagers who have sleep disorders: it is around 15-20%. On top of that, nearly one in three teenagers complains of sleepiness during the day. The prevalence of sleep pathologies is high among teenagers.

Are there factors that amplify the phenomenon?

There are several factors that aggravate lack of sleep. Multimedia consumption, of course. This decreases sleep time and leads to chronic sleep deprivation. According to the National Institute of Sleep and Vigilance (INSV), 80% of French people are affected by nocturnal awakenings. Among teenagers, one can imagine that cell phone notifications during the night reinforce this phenomenon.

Post-covid, we have a worsening of mental health in adolescents which plays an important role. Sleep is multidimensional: an anxiety disorder or depressive symptoms result in sleep disorders. Insomnia, difficulty falling asleep, early awakenings, increased need for sleep… The consequences are numerous.

Do teens have the same sleep needs as adults?

Average sleep needs gradually decrease with advancing age. At 10, it’s regarding 10 hours; at 13 years old it is 9 hours, in adolescents it is between 8 and 9 hours while in adults it is between 7 and 8 hours. There are degrees of variability among individuals: if you do a lot of sport, you will of course need more sleep. Growing people naturally need more sleep than adults, but there is a decrease with age: there is no particular rebound in adolescence.

What are the consequences of a sleep deficit in teenagers?

A lack of sleep has consequences for everyone. But in adolescents, it is perhaps even more poignant because they are in the learning phase: academic skills suffer, which can lead to academic delay. Lack of sleep affects concentration, memory, mood, drowsiness.

There are also metabolic consequences: an appetite for fatty and sweet foods, therefore an increased risk of weight gain. It also increases the consumption of stimulants: coffee, tobacco… If we compare it to driving, following 24 hours of sleep debt, performance is equivalent to 0.8 grams of alcohol! Lack of sleep also worsens mental health, it’s a vicious circle: there is more risk of relapse following depression, more risk of suicide. Not getting enough sleep potentiates the severity of the psychiatric pathology.

What advice would you give to a teenager to make it easier to fall asleep?

You have to leave the laptop outside the room. Ideally, you should no longer use your phone following dinner. Between a teenager who sleeps with his laptop and a teenager who leaves it outside, there is a difference of 45 minutes in the time it takes to fall asleep. When parents give instructions on bedtimes, there are far fewer sleep disturbances among teenagers. It’s not so bad that adults are on the backs of their children!

It is necessary to have a quiet corner in the room which is not its bed, not to associate it with awakening activities. Then, reading or quiet music allows you to wait to feel the signals of sleep. Itchy eyes, yawning, decreased concentration: as soon as these signs appear, you have to go to bed within 10-15 minutes! If we miss this train of sleep, the desire to sleep returns by cycle, an hour and a half later.

Body temperature plays a role in falling asleep?

You don’t have to heat your bed. We have a low temperature in the night between 3am and 5am, then it goes up until 9pm, before starting to go down. It is during this drop in body temperature that we fall asleep. So if you’ve been trying to sleep in a heated bed for hours, with your computer on your thighs while watching a series, it’s the worst thing to do!