Only 5 Percent of Adolescents Meet Sleep, Exercise, Screen Time Guidelines
A study published in February 2019 in JAMA Pediatrics discovered that only 1 in 20 adolescents are meeting the guidelines and that a discrepancy exists between the sexes. Only three percent of girls get enough sleep and exercise and don’t exceed screen time recommendations, compared to seven percent of boys.
According to the study, children aged 6 to 12 years old should get between nine and 12 hours of sleep. Children aged 14 to 18 years old should sleep for eight to 10 hours per night. Both groups should get at least one hour of moderate to vigorous exercise a day and limit screen time to less than two hours a day.
Gregory Knell, author and research fellow at the University of Texas School of Public Health, said in a press release that he was surprised by how few adolescents are hitting the benchmarks and that the study’s results are a “wake-up call.” He added that there can be considerable effects on physical and emotional health and academic performance.
Researchers analyzed the responses of almost 60,000 high school students in the U.S. from the 2011 to 2017 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey. They found that older teens, African-American and Asian children, those classified as obese and those who showed signs of depression were the least likely to meet all the guidelines.
Based on the results, the authors stress that doctors need to speak more with their patients about these behaviors and provide advice to them and their families.
Excerpted from “Only 5 Percent of Adolescents Meet Sleep, Exercise, Screen Time Guidelines” in U.S. News & World Report. Read the full story.
