Study Suggests Sleep Problems In Teenagers Lead To Cannabis Use And Binge Drinking Lead

Factors like sleep timing and length of sleep in teenagers and young adults are linked to an increased risk of cannabis use and binge drinking, according to recently published research.

A summary of the study “Self-Reported Sleep and Circadian Characteristics Predict Future Substance Use: A Longitudinal Analysis from the NCANDA Study” was published in an online supplement to Sleep magazine last month.

To complete the study, researchers analyzed data from the National Consortium on Alcohol and Neurodevelopment in Adolescence (NCANDA) study to examine whether multiple sleep factors in one year predict substance use in the following year. The study’s authors noted in their introduction that there is growing evidence that sleep characteristics predict later substance use and related problems during adolescence and young adulthood.

However, most previous studies examined a limited range of sleep characteristics, included study participants of a limited age range, and had relatively few follow-up assessments. For this research, data from 831 NCANDA participants, including 431 women, were reviewed. The subjects were 12 to 21 years old at the start of the study.

Research found that greater eveningness (late night preference and delayed sleep time) and shorter weekdays’ sleep predicted an increased risk of extra days of cannabis use in the following year. In addition, greater evening time and later weekend sleep predicted a greater likelihood of cannabis use in the following year.

The researchers also analyzed the data on sleep associations with the severity of alcohol consumption. Greater evenings, greater daytime sleepiness, falling asleep later on the weekend and shorter sleep periods on the weekend and during the week were associated with an increased risk of binge drinking in the test subjects in the following year.

“Overall, the results suggest that middle and high school adolescents may be more prone to sleep-related substance use risk,” said lead author Brant P. Hasler, a PhD in clinical psychology researcher and associate professor of psychiatry. Psychology and clinical and translational science at the Center for Sleep and Circadian Science at the University of Pittsburgh. “The particular pattern of sleep predictors in the middle and high school sample is consistent with the ‘circadian misalignment’ caused by early school enrollment.”

Most teenagers don’t get enough sleep

Data from the CDC shows that only a quarter of high school students get adequate sleep on school nights, with early school enrollment cited as a factor in the deficit. For this reason, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends that middle and high school start times be 8:30 a.m. or later so that students can get enough sleep on school nights. The study’s authors found that introducing later sleep times can also help reduce the frequency of drug use among adolescents.

“Sleep is a changeable behavior and maybe easier to change than looking directly for substance use,” said Hasler. “In addition, other studies show that college-aged teenagers are more likely to hear about a change in their sleep than a change in their substance use. Therefore, focusing on improving teenagers’ sleep – including delaying back to school – can be an underutilized but effective approach to reducing the risk of problem substance use. “

The researchers wrote that the study was in line with previous research and found that awareness of teenagers’ sleeping habits could help parents and health professionals manage substance abuse by young people.

“Our results expand on the previous work and suggest that evening time and later sleep times as well as shorter sleep times, especially on weekdays, are risk factors for future cannabis use and alcohol abuse,” the researchers write in their conclusion. “These results underscore the need to pay more attention to sleep characteristics as potential risk factors for substance use in adolescents and young adults, and may influence future areas of intervention.”