Not Laziness, but Biology
Teenagers who stay up late and struggle with early school schedules—commonly known as “night owls”—are more prone to depression.
The common stereotype is to label these teens as “lazy,” but new research from UC San Francisco shows it’s more about biology than willpower.
Notably, among teenagers with depression, 80% report being night owls, a figure that’s twice as high as the rate among teens overall.
A Fresh Approach to Managing Sleep and Depression
The study focused on helping these teenagers adjust their lives to better match their natural sleep-wake cycle.
Lauren Asarnow, Ph.D., who led the research, said the goal was to let these teens sleep as late as possible while also nudging their bodies to fall asleep a little earlier each night.
The study worked with 42 teens with clinical depression, all of whom were naturally inclined to stay up late and sleep in.
The teens were split into two groups: one received an intervention specifically designed to help adjust their sleep patterns, called the Transdiagnostic Sleep and Circadian Intervention (TransS-C), and the other received educational sessions about maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
The researchers followed up with the teens six months and 12 months after the treatment.
The group that underwent the sleep intervention showed a remarkable improvement in their depression symptoms compared to those who received the general lifestyle advice.
Why This Study Matters
Depression is a serious issue among teenagers. About 3 million adolescents experience at least one major depressive episode each year, and roughly 40% do not respond well to traditional treatments.
Given that teens who are night owls are more likely to experience recurrent and severe depression, this study offers a new approach that could make a real difference.
Teens in the study who participated in the TransS-C intervention saw significant improvements in their mood.
The average depression score for these teens dropped from clinically significant levels to much lower, healthier scores six and twelve months post-treatment.
In contrast, the scores for the teens who received general lifestyle advice remained largely unchanged.
According to Asarnow, this new approach is essential because it allows teens to live in a way that’s more aligned with their natural biology.
“We need to stop calling these kids ‘lazy,'” she said. “A lot of the time it is just their biology. It’s not their fault.”
Looking Forward
The research team at UC San Francisco plans to enroll 200 more teens in the Bay Area for a larger study this fall. The aim is to confirm the promising results and offer new treatment pathways for teens with depression.
This research has the potential to shift the perspective on teen depression and sleep patterns, emphasizing that sometimes the issue isn’t laziness or a lack of discipline, but rather a need to align lifestyle choices with one’s biological clock.
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The research findings can be found in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.
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