Teens are more likely to choke on weed and alcohol when doing this

According to a new study, teenagers who don’t sleep through the night are more likely to abuse alcohol and cannabis.

The data was published in the journal Sleep and comes from a longitudinal study that wanted to investigate whether sleep could be a predictor of future substance abuse. It was carried out by the National Consortium on Alcohol and Neurodevelopment in Adolescence (NCANDA).

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The researchers designed the study to measure whether sleep deprivation in teenagers could affect the following year. The authors concluded that lack of sleep correlates with future drug abuse of cannabis and alcohol.

The researchers collected data from 831 participants, ages 12-21. The data showed that people who slept late at night and had shorter nights on weekdays were at a higher risk of using cannabis extra days the following year.

When it came to alcohol, adolescents and young adults went to bed later, and the more sleepy they were, the more likely they were to binge drink in the following year.

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“Overall, the results suggest that middle and high school adolescents may be more susceptible to a sleep-related risk of substance use,” said Brant P. Hasler, lead author of the study. “The particular pattern of sleep predictors in the middle and high school sample is consistent with the ‘circadian misalignment’ caused by starting school early.”

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Sleep is an incredibly important factor in human health, especially among teenagers and growing children. Findings like this have been replicated in other studies, but this research is one of the first times where there was follow-up and more solid conclusions could be drawn.

Addiction and substance abuse are tough topics, especially when it comes to teenagers and young adults. To prevent these types of problems, taking measures such as postponing back to school and making it easier for teens to sleep can lead to more successful and healthier outcomes than treating a drug problem that has already started.