![Late nights with homework or social media can rob teens of much-needed sleep. [Associated Press]](http://www.jstudentboard.com/reporter/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Sleep.jpg)
The increase in technological uses is a contributing factor.. Aside from being a distraction, electronics can highly impact the quality and length of sleep. This strengthens the idea that sleep trouble may have a very close connection with the phones and computers people often use.
Yet technology is not the only cause.
Deliana Park, a Whitney High School faculty member, told JSR, “There are so many more things to do: social media, more programs, extracurriculars. People have so many more opportunities now that it takes time away from sleep.”
While more opportunities for today’s youth may be a good thing in some regards, the affected sleep schedules bring up concerns. Teenagers ought to be getting around nine hours of sleep each night, but a 2013 study by Gallup shows that 40% of Americans get less than seven hours of sleep. In 1942, according to Gallup, 84% of Americans were getting enough sleep.
With so much to do in such little time, it seems teenagers often disregard sleep. This change may be detrimental to individual reaction time and focus, which could be consequential to daily activities in school and sports.
“People will be more sleep deprived,” Park told JSR when asked to predict what will happen in the future.
“Society will only get more busier with all the growing technologies and opportunities, and this will cause people to be less happy and adjusted,” Park explained.
It seems that unless our habits change, the amount of sleep people get will only decrease. While it is easy to realize the problem, fixing it is not an easy task. Teenagers should try their best to get enough sleep, as doing so can significantly improve their lifestyles.
