Changes in Sleep as a Function of Adolescent Development

Abstract

Adolescence is marked by dramatic changes in sleep. Older adolescents go to bed later, have an increased preference for evening activities, and sleep less than younger adolescents. This behavior change is driven by external factors, notably increased pressures from academic, social, and extracurricular activities and by biological circadian factors. There are also substantial changes in sleep architecture across adolescence, with dramatic declines in slow wave sleep, and slow wave activity (delta, ~ 0.5-4.5 Hz). These changes are associated with underlying changes in brain structure and organization, with a decrease in synaptic density likely underlying the reduction in high amplitude slow waveforms. While changes in sleep across adolescence are a normal part of development, many adolescents are getting insufficient sleep and are consequently, less likely to perform well at school, more likely to develop mood-related disturbances, be obese, and are at greater risk for traffic accidents, alcohol and drug abuse.

Advancing a Biopsychosocial and Contextual Model of Sleep in Adolescence: A Review and Introduction to the Special Issue

“…These changes have an impact on sleep architecture as children enter into adolescence (see Colrain and Baker 2011;Dahl and Lewin 2002, for reviews). There is a decrease of slow wave sleep across adolescence (Colrain and Baker 2011;Ohayon et al 2004), with delta power [assessed with sleep electroencephalogram (EEG)] starting to decline notably around age 11 and theta power also showing a steep decline from age 11-16.5 (Campbell and Feinberg 2009).…”

“…These changes have an impact on sleep architecture as children enter into adolescence (see Colrain and Baker 2011;Dahl and Lewin 2002, for reviews). There is a decrease of slow wave sleep across adolescence (Colrain and Baker 2011;Ohayon et al 2004), with delta power [assessed with sleep electroencephalogram (EEG)] starting to decline notably around age 11 and theta power also showing a steep decline from age 11-16.5 (Campbell and Feinberg 2009). These changes in the adolescent EEG, which align with a decrease in gray matter brain tissue across adolescence, are hypothesized to be due to synaptic pruning that occurs as part of adolescent brain maturation (Campbell and Feinberg 2009;Feinberg and Campbell 2010;Whitford et al 2007).…”

“…For example, Taylor et al (2005) found sleep tendency after extended periods of wakefulness to be lower among mature adolescents (Tanner stage 5) in comparison to prepubertal adolescents (Tanner stage 1), leading the authors to conclude that ''a developmental change of intrinsic sleepwake regulation may provide physiologically mediated 'permission' for later bedtimes in older adolescents' ' (p. 239). That is, adolescence is characterized by an increase in eveningness preference (often described as a shift from being a ''morning lark'' to an ''evening owl''), which is itself linked to pubertal status (Colrain and Baker 2011) and reaches its peak around the age of 20 before beginning its steady decline across adulthood (Roenneberg et al 2004). This also contributes to a weekend phase delay wherein, starting around age 9 (Thorleifsdottir et al 2002), many adolescents try to ''catch up'' on sleep on weekends when the weekday demands requiring an early rise time such as school are less pressing.…”

Poor sleep as a pathophysiological pathway underlying the association between stressful experiences and the diurnal cortisol profile among children and adolescents

“…This hypothesis was supported even when sleep duration was controlled, suggesting that the relation between stressful experiences and diurnal cortisol in youth is driven by the quality, not the quantity of sleep. It is noted that pubertal development and age of pubertal onset are associated with widespread neurobiological, physiological, and social changes known to adversely affect sleep quality in youth (e.g., Colrain and Baker, 2011). More research is required to further elucidate the complex association between sleep, stress, and diurnal cortisol across pubertal stages and age onset of pubertal development.…”

A cognitive-behavioral and mindfulness-based group sleep intervention improves behavior problems in at-risk adolescents by improving perceived sleep quality

“…However, a recent meta-analysis found that 53% of adolescents obtain less than 8 h of sleep on school nights, and 36% report difficulty falling asleep (Gradisar, Gardner, & Dohnt, 2011). Physiological maturation processes (Colrain & Baker, 2011) social/cultural factors (Bartel, Gradisar, & Williamson, 2015;Maume, 2013) interact in adolescence so that reduced sleep propensity in the late evening becomes permissive of continued waking activities and delayed bedtimes (BT). This delay in sleep onset results in sleep restriction, because school starts early in the morning.…”