A good night’s sleep has many proven benefits, including a healthier future for children.
A new study from Penn State University looked at how childhood sleep habits might be linked to future substance use.
Researchers at the university found that teens who went to bed later and slept fewer hours as children were more likely to have used alcohol or marijuana by age 15.
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The study, published in the journal Annals of Epidemiology, looked at data from 1,514 children from 20 cities across the United States, focusing on sleep duration and bedtime at different stages of development.
Recent research found that teens were 45% more likely to try alcohol by age 15 if they went to bed later at age 9. (iStock)
Parents involved in the Future of Families and Child Well-being Study, from which the data were obtained, recorded their children’s bedtimes at ages 3, 5 and 9, as well as sleep duration at ages 5 and 9.
The results showed that teens were 45% more likely to try alcohol at age 15 if they went to bed later at age 9.
However, bedtime at age 5 was not associated with future alcohol use, nor was sleep duration at either age.
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At the same time, a later bedtime at age 5 was associated with a 26% increased likelihood of marijuana use at age 15.
Sleeping one hour less at age 9 increases the risk of trying marijuana as a teenager by 19%.
A later bedtime at age 5 was associated with a 26% increased likelihood of marijuana use at age 15. (iStock)
The 15-year-olds also reported their bedtime, sleep duration and substance use, revealing that those who went to bed later were 39 percent more likely to drink alcohol and 34 percent more likely to try marijuana.
“By ensuring children get enough quality sleep, we can protect their long-term health and encourage positive health behaviors later in life.”
Teens who slept one hour less increased their odds of trying alcohol by 28 percent, but there was no link with marijuana.
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In a statement sent to Fox News Digital, study co-author David A. Reichenberger, PhD — a researcher in Penn State’s department of biobehavioral health — noted that the study only included participants who had complete data, “so that we can assess effects over time within the same group of children.”
“Overall, the implications of our findings suggest that sleep may play a crucial role in children’s decisions to use substances in adolescence,” he said.
Researchers have suggested that going to bed later may impact school-aged children’s ability to sleep well. (iStock)
“By ensuring children get adequate, quality sleep, we can protect their long-term health and encourage positive health behaviors later in life,” the researcher added.
Dr. Wendy Troxel, a senior social and behavioral scientist at the RAND Corporation in Park City, Utah, told Fox News Digital how this study adds to growing evidence that sleep problems can lead to “risky health behaviors” later in life.
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“These findings are consistent with my work with my colleagues at RAND showing that poor sleep health in adolescence longitudinally predicts increased alcohol and marijuana use in early adulthood,” she said.
“Overall, the implications of our findings suggest that sleep may play a crucial role in children’s decisions to use substances in adolescence,” one researcher said. (iStock)
“Importantly, these new data suggest that sleep problems, even earlier in life, may predict substance use during adolescence – a critical inflection point for the onset and exacerbation of drug and other alcohol use.”
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According to Troxel, sleep problems can increase the likelihood of substance use due to impaired decision-making, impulse control and emotion regulation abilities.
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“Collectively, these findings highlight the importance of addressing sleep problems using multilevel strategies, including family programs and public policies, such as later school start times, to promote sleep health during childhood and adolescence,” she said.
