ATHENS, Ga. — New research by the University of Georgia found that deciding not to sleep as long as a teenager can actually impact your overall decision-making abilities.
According to the UGA study, a lack of quality sleep can put young people at risk of developing problematic behaviors when they’re older.
UGA researchers said their study examined adolescents and their sleeping habits, linking less sleep to less connectivity in the parts of the brain that handle decision-making, self-reflection and how you process information.
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"Malfunctions in these parts of the brain are also linked to mental illnesses such as depression, ADHD and schizophrenia," UGA said.
In terms of how that plays out, children with less brain connectivity were reported to be more likely to have behavior issues, such as poor impulse control, being more aggressive or acting out.
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UGA said the study suggests that interventions to increase how long adolescents sleep could prevent future behavior issues.
“Sleep isn’t just good for children. It helps keep their mental health intact and helps them regulate their emotions,” Assaf Oshri, corresponding author of the study and a professor in the UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences, said.
Oshri also serves as director of the UGA Georgia Center for Developmental Science.
The study found that how frequently adolescents don’t sleep enough can impact long-term effects on the brain and that too many nights with too little sleep can make issues “snowball.”
“Adolescence is an extremely critical period for brain development,” Linhao Zhang, lead author of the study and a recent doctoral graduate of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, said. “And sleep is critical for brain development. But many adolescents don’t get enough quality sleep at night.”
Zhang said the lack of good, quality sleep can also make it harder for children to learn how to regulate their emotions and be less impulsive.
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