Exams are stressful to teens, and many sacrifice sleep—and the mental alertness that comes with it—in the month leading up to test time, according to results from a survey conducted by The Sleep Council, the consumer arm of the National Bed Federation, a trade association representing bed manufacturers and suppliers in the U.K.
According to its research:
■ In the month leading up to exams, the number of teenagers who get just five to six hours of sleep a night doubles from 10% to 20%.
■ 83% of teenagers’ sleep is affected by worry/stress over exams.
■ More than half (56%) admit to regularly cramming all their studying into a single night.
■ More than four out of five (82%) teenagers study on their bed.
“Our research shows that a worryingly high number of teenagers are not getting as much sleep as they need to function and perform at their best in the build up to exams,” says Lisa Artis, PR and marketing officer of The Sleep Council.
The poll of 1,000 teens ages 13 to 18 was conducted for The Sleep Council as it launched its new teen sleep micro site www.teen-sleep.org.uk with help from The Children’s Sleep Charity, according to a press release from the organization.
“We know that a good bed is a comfortable and comforting place to be, but we would rather students sleep in it than study on it,” Artis says. “A good night’s sleep is one of the most important tools for doing well in your studies. Students need to get at least six to eight hours of sleep a night, particularly on the night before an exam.”
