4 Troubled Teens Blog

Lack of sleep may cause depression in teenagers, according to Dr. Allison Harvey, a psychologist at the University of California. Previously, most experts believed that depression caused lack of sleep.

• Dr. Harvey noted that one in five teenagers experiences depression -- and of that group, one in three will not respond to treatment.
• She and her colleagues are studying 60 middle and high school students at the UC Sleep and Psychological Disorders Laboratory.
• If their theories are correct, sleep could become a treatment option for depressed teenagers.

Studies show that very few teenagers get the recommended nine hours of sleep per night; in fact, the average is seven hours of nightly shuteye.

Labels: depression, mental_health, sleep

Posted By: Aspen/CRC