Teen Health

How Sleep, or Lack of, Affects Teen Athletes

Teen Sleep and Teen Athletics continued...

All this has a profound effect on athletic performance. Carskadon concludes that:

• Before puberty, children and young teens function better early in the day than in the afternoon and evening.
• During and after puberty, teens perform worst in the morning.
• All kids' performance benefits from routine, adequate sleep on a regular schedule.
• Teen teams that travel west across time zones have an advantage early in the day.
• High school or college teams that take long training trips are likely to have schedule problems when they come home. This is especially true for teams on the East Coast that travel west.

Many adults take melatonin supplements to help them adjust to jet lag or as a sleeping aid. Carskadon warns that melatonin may be dangerous for teens as it may delay normal development during puberty.