Sleep Deprivation in Kids Linked With Cognitive Difficulties

We’ve got some dire news for all you night owls. A brand new study from the University of Maryland School of Medicine linked sleep deprivation with behavioral problems, anxiety, and poor cognitive performance at school in children.

The study conducted some 8,300 MRI images of children aged 9–10 and found underdeveloped regions in their brains associated with memory, mental health, cognitive tasks, and general well-being.

Surprisingly, this includes children that get seven to eight hours of sleep per night, according to the study. Although this might be ample sleep for an adult, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends children aged 6 to 12 years get at least 9 hours of sleep.

The results of the study, published in the journal Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, show considerably thinner grey matter in the regions of the brain that regulate mental health and cognition compared to those who slept 9 to 12 hours per night. 

Researchers always knew that adolescence is a crucial period in the development of the brain. Yet, nobody expected such stark results, considering that very few children get eight hours of sleep as is, let alone 12. 

Lethargy, impulsive behavior, and anxiety and depression were some of the more common symptopms in sleep-deprived children. Cognitive difficulties, such as memory problems, hampered problem-solving capabilities, and poor decision-making, were also present.

Worse yet, two years after the initial study, researchers conducted a follow-up. What they found was concerning, to say the least. Namely, even after two years, the same neurodevelopmental differences were still present. This implies that a lack of sleep in children causes long-term consequences that quite possibly persist even in adulthood.