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I wonder how much of this problem is caused by our sedentary lifestyles. I am a bit of a night owl myself, but I sleep much more soundly if I have a lot of phy

I wonder how much of this problem is caused by our sedentary lifestyles. I am a bit of a night owl myself, but I sleep much more soundly if I have a lot of physical activity across the day. If I walk 20 000 steps and spend an hour in the gym, I have no trouble falling asleep. Teenagers being the bombs of energy that they are, might need some 5-6 hours of physical activity to actually tire and sleep well. But a typical highschooler sits most of the day on his/her ass.

TaylorAlexander 4y ago
Personal anecdote but I was extremely active in high school, playing football, mountain biking 20-40 miles every week, and working an outdoor job, and it was a nightmare to wake up for my 9:15am classes. High school for me was 1999-2003 so I didn't spent a whole lot of time on the computer, which was in my older brother's room.
colechristensen 4y ago
Individual and age based preferences for early or late sleeping schedules have been observed in modern day hunter gatherer tribes. It is highly doubtful that this has anything to do with modern lifestyles instead it is a feature of humanity. The concept that everyone should keep the same sleep schedule and at that an early rising one is the product of the industrial revolution and Protestant work ethic in the west. It is unnatural.
- inglor_cz 4y ago
  "It is unnatural." Most of our lifestyle is unnatural (we live very differently from the original hunters and gatherers), but we could often find ways how to adapt without causing too much suffering. If teenagers suffer, I would look at various methods how to mitigate their suffering. Starting the school later is an obvious quick patch, but we shouldn't ignore other problems, such as quality of sleep in general. Not least because some of the problems may persist indefinitely. Having not enough physical activity is, in my opinion, a contributing factor, though not probably an overwhelming one.
  - dymk 4y ago
    Many studies have shown that teenagers go to bed later and wake up later, and forcing them to wake up earlier is bad for their cognition. People generally start naturally waking up earlier as they get older.

TaylorAlexander 4y ago

Personal anecdote but I was extremely active in high school, playing football, mountain biking 20-40 miles every week, and working an outdoor job, and it was a nightmare to wake up for my 9:15am classes. High school for me was 1999-2003 so I didn't spent a whole lot of time on the computer, which was in my older brother's room.

colechristensen 4y ago

Individual and age based preferences for early or late sleeping schedules have been observed in modern day hunter gatherer tribes. It is highly doubtful that this has anything to do with modern lifestyles instead it is a feature of humanity. The concept that everyone should keep the same sleep schedule and at that an early rising one is the product of the industrial revolution and Protestant work ethic in the west. It is unnatural.

inglor_cz 4y ago
"It is unnatural." Most of our lifestyle is unnatural (we live very differently from the original hunters and gatherers), but we could often find ways how to adapt without causing too much suffering. If teenagers suffer, I would look at various methods how to mitigate their suffering. Starting the school later is an obvious quick patch, but we shouldn't ignore other problems, such as quality of sleep in general. Not least because some of the problems may persist indefinitely. Having not enough physical activity is, in my opinion, a contributing factor, though not probably an overwhelming one.
- dymk 4y ago
  Many studies have shown that teenagers go to bed later and wake up later, and forcing them to wake up earlier is bad for their cognition. People generally start naturally waking up earlier as they get older.