We Make Melatonin Later!

Today was my high school daughters’ official first day of classes. I can’t say first day of school, because last week there were freshmen orientations and senior boot camps. None of which started at the usual school morning time, so there was no need for the early alarm, and in turn, allowed them to continue their summer late-owl night routines.

Last night was the end of a fantastic 12 weeks. Unfortunately, both girls were lost in their evening activities. One loves to write and the other to draw. I thought they had gone to bed but was surprised no one came to say good night. (They both still do that, including a hug. I will not complain!)

I don’t like disrupting their creativity, but please get to bed!

Those teenagers need their sleep!

Here’s a breakdown of the number of hours of sleep needed by children in three different age groups:

• Teens ages 14-17 years: 8-10 hours per night
• School aged kids from 6-13 years: 9-11 hours per night
• Preschoolers ages 3-5 years: 10-13 hours per night

Studies unfortunately show that children do not get enough sleep. Six out of 10 middle schoolers and 7 out of 10 high schools do not meet the minimum number of hours of sleep needed each night.

Three causes of this lack of rest have been suggested:

1. Social and behavioral factors: caffeine intake, social media use, and daily pressures of school, activities, and friends
2. Structural factors: rigorous schedules for school, work, athletics, and other extracurricular activities
3. Biology: Teens operate in what’s referred to as “Phase Delay.” Due to the timing of their daily melatonin production, their bodies naturally stay up later and sleep in more. Melatonin is our sleep hormone produced naturally in our bodies. This works on the weekends but not for when school is in session.

I made the mistake of explaining factor number 3 above to my older daughter. Now she jokingly claims that she can’t go to bed because she hasn’t made enough melatonin yet. (Nice try)

This natural shifting of teens’ biological sleep/wake times will eventually reset to more reasonable ones as they age into their early 20s.

In the meantime, teens are experiencing rapid physical, mental, social, and emotional development, and all of these require quality sleep. The benefits of 8-10 hours of sleep are numerous:

• Body systems: immune support, regulates hormones, enables muscle and tissue recovery
• Emotional support: reduces stress, improves mood
• Crucial for the brain: critical thinking, creativity, memory
• Accidents and injuries: sharpens the ability to stay focused; allows for better behavior decision making

Getting into a regular sleep routine may be a struggle at first, but it is definitely doable. Establish a sleep/wake cycle: shift bed and wake-up times by 10-15 minutes until they reach the schedule that is desired. And (though it may not be a popular statement!) limit the number of hours teens sleep in on the weekends. The goal is to stay as consistent as possible. Try these tips as well:

• Low lighting
• White noise machine or fan
• Diffuse essential oils such as lavender or cedarwood
• Use a linen spray on the pillow to promote relaxation
• Exercise 30 minutes a day
• Go outside and see the daylight. This will be a help to stay awake during the daytime
• If a nap is needed, take one as early in the afternoon as possible and limit it to 20 to 30 minutes
• Eat meals at consistent times, and try to refrain from a large meal before bed

And of course, the big one, limit the use of electronics 1 hour before bed. The blue light emitted from the screens suppresses the production of melatonin. Also, electronic devices take up a lot of time–who hasn’t gotten lost in TikTok videos or Instagram reels for waaaaaay too long? Social media could also have a psychological impact as the content could be disruptive to a teen’s thoughts before sleep.

If keeping the phone in the bedroom is too tempting, create a central charging spot in the home for everyone’s devices. It has been reported that 36% of teens wake up in the middle of the night to check their phones! Buy an alarm clock to keep next to the bed instead. Parents can easily role model all of this as well.

I wish families the best of luck this upcoming school year! If you’d like to learn more, please reference the following sites that I have used to guide this post. Sleep well!

Sleep Foundation

National Sleep Foundation

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention