Sleep Deprivation and its Effects on Today’s Teenagers Essay
Anoushka Divekar
Monday, April 15th, 2013
English 9 Honors
Mr. Hartwig
Sleep Deprivation and its Effects on Today’s Teenagers
If a teenager were to drive down the road with six or less hours of sleep the previous night, he or she would be left as impaired as if driving under the influence of alcohol at a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% (Peterson 13). Driving in such a way would be considered illegal in most of the Fifty States of America. Sleep deprivation has become a big problem recently because teenagers have many activities after school in addition to homework, meals, and transportation. Overscheduling, combined with a lessened ability to prioritize in the developing years, results in only 15% of teenagers receiving an adequate nine hours of sleep according to the National Sleep Foundation (Unknown 1). Teenagers need an adequate amount of sleep because of sleep deprivation’s negative effects on developing brains and emotions. Today’s adolescents need at least nine hours of sleep because without it, teenagers’ academic potentials are lowered. Teenagers may have severe negative physical problems and other long term health consequences due to sleep deprivation. Some people believe that teenagers can be healthy and well without nine full hours of sleep. However, because of the above reasons, teenagers need a full nine hours of sleep to remain in mental, academic, and physical well-being.
Sleep deprivation leaves negative impacts on teenagers’ brains. Due to a lack of stimulants sent to the brain, those who do not have adequate amounts of sleep are often susceptible to negative feelings such as irritability, aggression, depression and impatience. 17% of teenagers who lack sleep on a regular basis claim to be highly depressed (Unknown 2). Teenagers that face emotional negativity have trouble building relationships and are not socially adept. The adolescent brain is in its final developing stages and is put under copious amounts of stress. Often, the brain cannot deal with any more stress than it is put under biologically. Teenagers with emotional negativity are more likely to put excess amounts of stress on the brain, causing it not to work to its full potential. These teenagers are at a higher risk of mental problems, and teen suicide. Because sleep deprivation can cause teens to have negative emotional effects with disastrous consequences, teenagers should get a full nine hours of sleep every night.
Adolescents who receive less than nine hours of sleep in general also have a lowered academic potential. These students often have no attention span and decreased learning and thinking abilities. Often times, they are not able to recall previous material. As a result, these teenagers receive lower than potential grades. Sleep deprivation can cause drops in G.P.A., which can impact future life plans such as college and job opportunities. To be able to compete in the world as adults, people must be able to provide for themselves in times of need. It is harder to get a job without first going to college. In order to be accepted into certain colleges or jobs, a certain G.P.A. must be maintained throughout schooling years. Living as an adult requires a certain amount of education acquired from learning, which cannot be done on a lack of sleep. Therefore, teenagers need to receive an adequate amount of sleep.
Teenagers who are sleep deprived often have life changing physical ailments. They can have droopy skin, and circles around their eyes. They are often more prone to skin problems. The most prominent correlation between sleep deprivation and health problems is obesity. 77% of those who are considered obese do not get nine hours of sleep (Unknown 1). Obesity leads to other high risk health problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and other long term health problems. Diseases such as these often lead to a shorter lifespan and untimely deaths. Because premature death and long term health problems can result from sleep deprivation, teenagers should get the recommended amount of sleep every night.
Some people disagree that teenagers need nine hours of sleep. They believe that teenagers are able to function on fewer than nine hours of sleep. They also claim it is unrealistic to have time to fit nine hours of sleep into a teenager’s life. However, according to the National Sleep Foundation, creating a sleep schedule will work extracurriculars around nine hours of sleep per night. Even if a teenager is able to function on less amounts of sleep on one day, over time the consequences of sleep deprivation can lead to many long term problems listed above. Due to the fact that teenagers can suffer from long term effects of sleep deprivation, teenagers need to get nine hours of sleep every night.
Today’s teenagers suffer from many stressful issues, but perhaps the underlying problem to many of the hardships is sleep deprivation. The sleep deprived mind causes many teens to have negative feelings. Sleep deprivation can lead to lowered academic potential and cause setbacks in a teenager’s life. Being deprived of sleep can lead to irreversible physical ailments which can lead to untimely deaths. Some people say that adolescents can easily function on less than nine hours of sleep; however, studies have shown that without sleep, teenagers perform at a less-than-potential rate than if they were to get a sufficient amount of sleep. Though one day of sleep deprivation may be okay, “today’s teens are tomorrow’s future” and they cannot be sleeping through life to make the future work.
Monday, April 15th, 2013
English 9 Honors
Mr. Hartwig
Sleep Deprivation and its Effects on Today’s Teenagers
If a teenager were to drive down the road with six or less hours of sleep the previous night, he or she would be left as impaired as if driving under the influence of alcohol at a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% (Peterson 13). Driving in such a way would be considered illegal in most of the Fifty States of America. Sleep deprivation has become a big problem recently because teenagers have many activities after school in addition to homework, meals, and transportation. Overscheduling, combined with a lessened ability to prioritize in the developing years, results in only 15% of teenagers receiving an adequate nine hours of sleep according to the National Sleep Foundation (Unknown 1). Teenagers need an adequate amount of sleep because of sleep deprivation’s negative effects on developing brains and emotions. Today’s adolescents need at least nine hours of sleep because without it, teenagers’ academic potentials are lowered. Teenagers may have severe negative physical problems and other long term health consequences due to sleep deprivation. Some people believe that teenagers can be healthy and well without nine full hours of sleep. However, because of the above reasons, teenagers need a full nine hours of sleep to remain in mental, academic, and physical well-being.
Sleep deprivation leaves negative impacts on teenagers’ brains. Due to a lack of stimulants sent to the brain, those who do not have adequate amounts of sleep are often susceptible to negative feelings such as irritability, aggression, depression and impatience. 17% of teenagers who lack sleep on a regular basis claim to be highly depressed (Unknown 2). Teenagers that face emotional negativity have trouble building relationships and are not socially adept. The adolescent brain is in its final developing stages and is put under copious amounts of stress. Often, the brain cannot deal with any more stress than it is put under biologically. Teenagers with emotional negativity are more likely to put excess amounts of stress on the brain, causing it not to work to its full potential. These teenagers are at a higher risk of mental problems, and teen suicide. Because sleep deprivation can cause teens to have negative emotional effects with disastrous consequences, teenagers should get a full nine hours of sleep every night.
Adolescents who receive less than nine hours of sleep in general also have a lowered academic potential. These students often have no attention span and decreased learning and thinking abilities. Often times, they are not able to recall previous material. As a result, these teenagers receive lower than potential grades. Sleep deprivation can cause drops in G.P.A., which can impact future life plans such as college and job opportunities. To be able to compete in the world as adults, people must be able to provide for themselves in times of need. It is harder to get a job without first going to college. In order to be accepted into certain colleges or jobs, a certain G.P.A. must be maintained throughout schooling years. Living as an adult requires a certain amount of education acquired from learning, which cannot be done on a lack of sleep. Therefore, teenagers need to receive an adequate amount of sleep.
Teenagers who are sleep deprived often have life changing physical ailments. They can have droopy skin, and circles around their eyes. They are often more prone to skin problems. The most prominent correlation between sleep deprivation and health problems is obesity. 77% of those who are considered obese do not get nine hours of sleep (Unknown 1). Obesity leads to other high risk health problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and other long term health problems. Diseases such as these often lead to a shorter lifespan and untimely deaths. Because premature death and long term health problems can result from sleep deprivation, teenagers should get the recommended amount of sleep every night.
Some people disagree that teenagers need nine hours of sleep. They believe that teenagers are able to function on fewer than nine hours of sleep. They also claim it is unrealistic to have time to fit nine hours of sleep into a teenager’s life. However, according to the National Sleep Foundation, creating a sleep schedule will work extracurriculars around nine hours of sleep per night. Even if a teenager is able to function on less amounts of sleep on one day, over time the consequences of sleep deprivation can lead to many long term problems listed above. Due to the fact that teenagers can suffer from long term effects of sleep deprivation, teenagers need to get nine hours of sleep every night.
Today’s teenagers suffer from many stressful issues, but perhaps the underlying problem to many of the hardships is sleep deprivation. The sleep deprived mind causes many teens to have negative feelings. Sleep deprivation can lead to lowered academic potential and cause setbacks in a teenager’s life. Being deprived of sleep can lead to irreversible physical ailments which can lead to untimely deaths. Some people say that adolescents can easily function on less than nine hours of sleep; however, studies have shown that without sleep, teenagers perform at a less-than-potential rate than if they were to get a sufficient amount of sleep. Though one day of sleep deprivation may be okay, “today’s teens are tomorrow’s future” and they cannot be sleeping through life to make the future work.
Sleep Deprivation and its Effects on Today's Teenagers Self Reflection
Title of the Piece
Sleep Deprivation and its Effects on Today's Teenagers
Content
This essay was written on a research based topic. This essay discusses the recent problem of sleep deprivation in today's teens. The essay explains how sleep deprivation may be the underlying problem to other stresses in teenagers' lives. This essay also provides statistics explaining why sleep deprivation has become a problem in today's society.
What Do You Feel is Good in this Writing?
I think I did a good job researching statistics from reliable sources in this essay. I think particularly the statistic about depression was hard hitting, and could change a counter opinion.
I really liked my attention-getter, the same one I used for my oral presentation on this topic. Drunk driving is a subject that has recently been getting a lot of attention, and many people know the risks of it. I thinking that relating my less well known topic to a topic that is all over the world will get the attention of more readers. Also, because the comparison is illegal, it creates more effect than if I had given another fact about sleep deprivation.
I thought this essay was one of the more heartfelt essays I have written, and definitely the most relatable. Since I am a teenager, and I have a lot of activities, I think this essay made me realize that I should probably be getting more sleep. Since I could relate to this essay, I think I had more fun writing it, and overall cared about it more than I have cared about other essays. I think really understanding your writing is a key part of making your writing effective.
I think I did a good job spinning my refute by using it to help my argument rather than distracting the reader from my first point. I also think my refute itself was less believable than the thesis, so it was already easier to believe the thesis, and there is more evidence supporting the thesis than the refute.
What Do You Feel is Poor in this Essay, and How Would You Change It?
One thing that I noticed was wrong with this essay was my vagueness. I started the fifth paragraph with 'some people.' I needed to be more specific, defining the particular type of people who would reject the thesis. 'some people' is also used in the first and last paragraph. This lessens the credibility of the essay if I am not giving a specific person to discuss. In the first paragraph, I wrote 'in most of the Fifty States of America." Again, this is vague, and lessens credibility of my essay. I needed to explain that in some states, the legal BAC level is slightly higher than 0.08%.
Another slightly vague point was when in the first paragraph I explained that meals contribute to over-scheduling. I definitely needed to explain the evidence I had found on that point, which explained how today's meals have become a larger affair than they were approximately twenty years ago. This needed to be explained because not having enough time for meals, reading this essay later, seems like a bit of a stretch of the thesis.
An aspect of this essay that I still struggle with is adding effect to my thesis and supporting points in the first and last paragraphs. I am still having some trouble with adding voice to my essays without adding at least four sentences to each point, and I know that this is the part of my writing that needs the most work.
In especially my third paragraph, my points are not all backed up by by valid statistics. This is something I could probably have fixed easily by having a second person look over my essay to catch details I missed. Personally, I don't think I would have caught mistakes in the third paragraph, because I think my brain involuntarily fills in the missing information.
Overall, I liked this essay. I think the main downfall of it was the vagueness, but I think I will get better at making my essays more specific with more practice, and better proofreading.
Sleep Deprivation and its Effects on Today's Teenagers
Content
This essay was written on a research based topic. This essay discusses the recent problem of sleep deprivation in today's teens. The essay explains how sleep deprivation may be the underlying problem to other stresses in teenagers' lives. This essay also provides statistics explaining why sleep deprivation has become a problem in today's society.
What Do You Feel is Good in this Writing?
I think I did a good job researching statistics from reliable sources in this essay. I think particularly the statistic about depression was hard hitting, and could change a counter opinion.
I really liked my attention-getter, the same one I used for my oral presentation on this topic. Drunk driving is a subject that has recently been getting a lot of attention, and many people know the risks of it. I thinking that relating my less well known topic to a topic that is all over the world will get the attention of more readers. Also, because the comparison is illegal, it creates more effect than if I had given another fact about sleep deprivation.
I thought this essay was one of the more heartfelt essays I have written, and definitely the most relatable. Since I am a teenager, and I have a lot of activities, I think this essay made me realize that I should probably be getting more sleep. Since I could relate to this essay, I think I had more fun writing it, and overall cared about it more than I have cared about other essays. I think really understanding your writing is a key part of making your writing effective.
I think I did a good job spinning my refute by using it to help my argument rather than distracting the reader from my first point. I also think my refute itself was less believable than the thesis, so it was already easier to believe the thesis, and there is more evidence supporting the thesis than the refute.
What Do You Feel is Poor in this Essay, and How Would You Change It?
One thing that I noticed was wrong with this essay was my vagueness. I started the fifth paragraph with 'some people.' I needed to be more specific, defining the particular type of people who would reject the thesis. 'some people' is also used in the first and last paragraph. This lessens the credibility of the essay if I am not giving a specific person to discuss. In the first paragraph, I wrote 'in most of the Fifty States of America." Again, this is vague, and lessens credibility of my essay. I needed to explain that in some states, the legal BAC level is slightly higher than 0.08%.
Another slightly vague point was when in the first paragraph I explained that meals contribute to over-scheduling. I definitely needed to explain the evidence I had found on that point, which explained how today's meals have become a larger affair than they were approximately twenty years ago. This needed to be explained because not having enough time for meals, reading this essay later, seems like a bit of a stretch of the thesis.
An aspect of this essay that I still struggle with is adding effect to my thesis and supporting points in the first and last paragraphs. I am still having some trouble with adding voice to my essays without adding at least four sentences to each point, and I know that this is the part of my writing that needs the most work.
In especially my third paragraph, my points are not all backed up by by valid statistics. This is something I could probably have fixed easily by having a second person look over my essay to catch details I missed. Personally, I don't think I would have caught mistakes in the third paragraph, because I think my brain involuntarily fills in the missing information.
Overall, I liked this essay. I think the main downfall of it was the vagueness, but I think I will get better at making my essays more specific with more practice, and better proofreading.