ABSTRACT
Daytime sleepiness affects more than 50% of teenagers in the United States. Sleepiness can be a manifestation of a primary disorder of alertness such as narcolepsy, but more commonly occurs as a consequence of insufficient sleep, unrecognized by 90% of parents, with the majority of teens obtaining less than the 8.5 to 9.25 hours of sleep they need. The tendency toward obtaining an inadequate amount of sleep during adolescence has been well documented in the United States, as well as other developed countries. There are basic changes in sleep physiology that begin with the onset of puberty and evolve through adolescence, creating a unique pattern of sleep and wakefulness during the teenage years. These physiological changes result in the timing of optimal teen alertness being out of synchrony with that of younger siblings, parents, and the school schedule. Managing the sleepiness and altered circadian rhythm of the average adolescent can be extremely challenging.
