Boarding Schools for Girls

Too much work, too much stress and too little sleep have all been associated with negative health outcomes in adolescents and teenagers. And a new study from Duke University and the University of North Carolina indicates that many employers may be contributing to these problems.

• The Duke/UNC researchers have determined that many employers are breaking state laws by allowing teenagers to work more than three hours a day on school days and to work late hours at night.
  
• Youth under 16 years of age are required to have a work for signed by their parents and employers.
  
• They are not permitted to work between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. or long hours when school is in session.

The study appeared in the American Journal of Public Health.

Labels: work, sleep, stress

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It has been estimated that we spend 25 years of our lives sleeping. It sounds like a lot, but it's necessary. Getting adequate sleep improves both our physical and mental conditions. Because they are still growing, teenagers need an average of nine hours of sleep each night -- and failing to get enough sleep has been associated with teen depression and thoughts of suicide.

A Jan. 13 Contra Costa Times article by Tom McMahon provided the following suggestions for helping to ensure that your teen is getting enough sleep:

• Reading before bedtime is a good way to transition into sleep.
• Teens sleep better in cool, quiet and dark rooms.
• Encourage your teens to catch up on sleep on the weekends.
• Exercise daily.
• Do not allow any caffeine or sugar after 5 p.m.

"Explain to your teen the benefits of sleeping an hour or two more than usual," McMahon advised. "[When well rested] you become energized and happier, more alert and creative, and you can concentrate better on a project, you accomplish more, you feel better and you will be refreshed and perform more efficiently."

Labels: parenting, sleep, mental health, depression

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