World News for Students of English

26-11-2025 07:00

Sleep deprivation among American teenagers is an epidemic, with only one in ten getting the recommended 8 to 10 hours of sleep per night.

The main factor causing this is public policy, specifically early school start times, which force adolescents to wake up hours before their natural biological clock is ready due to a delayed release of the hormone melatonin around puberty.

This chronic lack of sleep severely impacts the teenage body and brain. It robs them of essential sleep for learning, memory consolidation, and emotional processing. The consequences are wide-ranging, mimicking ADHD symptoms, irritability, and significantly contributing to mental health issues like increased sadness, hopelessness, and even suicide attempts. Physical health risks, including obesity and diabetes, also rise.

Researchers argue that delaying school start times to no earlier than 8:30 am is the unequivocal solution. Districts that have made this change report powerful benefits, including higher test scores, reduced school absences, better mental and physical health, and safer communities due to a sharp drop in teen car crash rates.

Difficult words: biological clock (a natural timer inside your body that tells you when you should feel sleepy and when you should feel awake), consolidation (the process of making something stronger and more solid), unequivocal (leaving no doubt; clear).

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