A University of California, Davis study reveals that sleep quality has a stronger correlation with teenagers’ academic performance and social wellbeing than diet or exercise, highlighting the importance of prioritising sleep during adolescence.
A new study suggests that sleep may matter more than diet, exercise or screen habits when it comes to helping teenagers do well at school and get on better with others. The research, from the University of California, Davis, was published in a psychiatry journal and highlighted by Medical Xpress, drawing on data from the large-scale Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study.
Researchers looked at four everyday habits linked to mental health and daily functioning: sleep quality, screen time, physical activity and diet. They found that sleep showed the strongest connection with better grades and fewer social difficulties among children aged 10 to 13, especially those with symptoms of anxiety, depression or related mental health challenges. Screen use ranked second, while exercise and diet appeared to have a smaller effect in this analysis.
Jason Smuckney, the study’s lead author and a computational neuroscientist in the university’s department of psychiatry and behavioural sciences, said sleep stood out more than the team had expected, particularly when compared with screen use. The findings also reflected a wider body of research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and sleep specialists, who say adequate sleep supports concentration, memory, mood and school performance, while poor sleep can undermine both learning and wellbeing.
The study is a reminder that adolescence is a sensitive period for mental health and development. The Center for the Developing Adolescent says teenagers generally need 9 to 11 hours of sleep a night for best results, while research reviewed by the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine links inadequate sleep with problems in mood, school and home life. The UC Davis team said better sleep should not be seen as a substitute for professional mental health care, but as one practical step families can take to support young people’s daily lives.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
