Ep 014: How does later school start time help our teens be happier and healthier? -- With Julie Dahl

deepintosleep.co — Julie Dahl

with Dr. Yishan Xu

TODAY’S GUEST

Julie Dahl, APRN, CNP has practiced in sleep medicine for seventeen years. She currently practices at Respiratory Consultants and is the president of the Minnesota Sleep Society. She is the current president of the Minnesota Sleep Society, which is a professional organization for those who specialize in the field of sleep medicine. She is a member of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine where she served as an educational content writer. She previously served on the board of directors for the Society of Behavioral Sleep Medicine and the Minnesota Nurse Practitioners. She received her Master’s in Nursing at the College of St. Catherine after completing her undergraduate work at the University of Minnesota and is certified by the ANCC as an adult nurse practitioner.

WHAT WILL WE LEARN

Teenagers report more sleep insufficiency than adults.

Teenagers need 8 to 10 hours of sleep, 10:45pm to 8am is recommended generally.

Teenagers by nature are night owls. Their natural body rhythm make them sleep late and sleep in in the morning, and this is NORMAL.
It is difficult to force teens to fall asleep early, like 9pm, they may be unable to do that naturally.
“7am for teens is alike 4am for adults.“

Benefit of later school start time:

2014 study with over 9000 students: For those students who started school later, there were improved school attendance, better mental health, reduced substance use, and less traffic accidents.
Another data: Car accidents rate decreased by 16.5% after teens started school later.
Teens do actually get more sleep and don’t need to sleep that much during the weekend any more.
Sport performance is improved and injuries are reduced.

Later school start time should be combined with education program.

Allow enough time to sleep.
Watch signs of lack of sleep, such as grumpiness, poor grades, difficulties waking up in the morning, hyperactive (for younger kids).
Schedule family priorities around sleep.
Have a wind down period 1-2h before sleep
- dim lights
- put down electronic devices
- use blue light filters
- keep bedroom just for sleep, keep electronic devices out
- bright light in the morning

Naps become a problem when teens are doing it during school time.

Check how they sleep at night
Take short naps during day time, 30-40min
On the weekends, wake up teens no more than 1-2 hours later than normal school start time, to avoid social jet leg.

RESOURCES

For parents:

Julie Dahl’s TEDx talk

Here is a FAQ sheet about children's sleep for parents and a link to the Evidence Summary section of the Minnesota Sleep Society Teen Sleep Loss Toolkit
For resources and support for advocating for later start times in your area, go to Start School Later