Teens
too low on sleep, activity, and too high on screen time
University
of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
Only
1 in 20 U.S. adolescents is meeting national recommendations for sleeping,
physical activity, and screen time, according to new research by The University
of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).
The
study, published today in JAMA Pediatrics, also revealed
differences in the findings between females and males, with just 3 percent of
girls reaching all three guideline targets, compared to 7 percent of boys.
"There
is plenty of evidence to show how teenagers aren't getting enough physical
activity, or sufficient sleep, or keeping their screen time in check. But this
is the first time these three factors, which have a crucial bearing on a
child's health, have been analyzed together among a nationally representative
sample of U.S. adolescents," said first author Gregory Knell, PhD, a
postdoctoral research fellow at UTHealth School of Public Health in Dallas.
"The results are a wake-up call for everyone who wants to make sure our children have a healthy future."
"The results are a wake-up call for everyone who wants to make sure our children have a healthy future."
It is recommended by the National Sleep Foundation that children ages 14-18 sleep eight to 10 hours a night. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends at least an hour of moderate or vigorous physical activity daily, and limiting screen time to less than two hours.
The
research involved nearly 60,000 American high school students, using data from
the 2011-2017 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey.
"By
far the most startling finding was how few adolescents across the board are
meeting all three recommendations," Knell said. "I expected the
percentage of adolescents meeting all three requirements concurrently to be
low, but not this low.
The
combined effect on children's overall health could be considerable in terms of
their physical health, emotional well-being, and academic performance."
The
study further examined other attributes of the child -- age, race or ethnicity,
weight, and mental health -- and how these were linked to sleep, physical
activity, and screen time.
Findings
showed older teenagers, non-Hispanic black children, Asian children, those
classified as obese, and those who showed signs of depression were the least
likely to meet all recommendations when compared to their counterparts.
The
paper calls for more research to better understand the relationship among
sleep, physical activity, and screen time by exploring the effect these
behaviors have on each other and their wider implications over time. It also
urged doctors to ask patients about these behaviors, provide them and their
parents with advice, and make any necessary specialist referrals.
"These
findings are only scratching the surface and demonstrate a need to learn more
about the role parenting style and home environment may play in increasing or
curtailing these behaviors," Knell said.
"Although the study confirms and further reveals how few children are leading optimal lifestyles, it also raises many questions about what can be done to reverse that trend and improve their health."
"Although the study confirms and further reveals how few children are leading optimal lifestyles, it also raises many questions about what can be done to reverse that trend and improve their health."
