Abbasov 1 of 11

Murad Abbasov

ENG 1201

Prof Hellmers

November 24, 2021

Lack of Sleep Effects on Academic Performance

We spend 1/3 of our lives sleeping, meaning it is an essential part of our existence and

survival. Sleep deprivation is a widespread problem seen all around the world among the

students of this generation. Sleep deprivation occurs when there is an inadequate amount of

sleep. Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control claims “over 57% of middle school

students and 72% of high school students reported sleeping less than what was recommended

based on their age, including the 23.8% of adolescents” (Suni, 2021). Over time, “without

enough sleep, students can have problems with attention, memory, and problem-solving" states

Suni (Suni, 2021). Suni adds that Sleep deprivation can also lead to emotional difficulties and

behavioral disorders, which can influence academic performance (Suni 2021). Therefore, it is

vital to investigate how sleep really affects the student's cognitive health and how we can

demonstrate ways to implement good sleep. Sleep deprivation is caused by too much technology

use, excessive intake of caffeine and late food consumption resulting in impairment of cognitive

function and poor academic performance.

Sleep deprivation is caused by many factors. Among the leading factors, technology and

the use of electronic devices are proven to be the greatest causes of sleep deprivation. Students of

this generation are deficient in sleep. Technology can be addictive, especially for children.
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Implementing unhealthy habits. Using electronical devices before or during bedtime could be

tempting but studies have shown that it could interfere with your sleep. According to a 2014

American Sleep Poll, 89 percent of teenagers said they keep their phone in their room at night.

These gadgets excite the brain, making it more difficult to fall asleep. They also emit blue light, a

kind of light that can cause sleep disturbances. (Suni, 2021). In addition, the use of these devices

before bed can suppress the production of melatonin, which is the hormone that causes us to get

tired and ready for sleep. The percentages might seem normal, but they are abnormally high

because technological devices can be very addictive, especially if they are used daily by students.

Eventually these addictive habits could lead to serious health complications.

Food consumption and caffeine intake before bed have proven to affect overall sleep.

According to a study by the U.S. National Library of Medicine, food consumption during the

nighttime period is associated with terrible quality of sleep. Food intake near bedtime (dinner

and late-night snack) was revealed to be negatively associated to sleep quality variables

(Crispim, 2011). Eating late at night-time causes the muscles in our bodies that digest our food

are having to work rather than rest (as they should be). This results in a delay in our ability to fall

asleep. Moreover, we are unable to enter the deepest resting stage of sleep. (REM) sleep that we

need to wake up refreshed. According to Kate Watts, Dietician at “Cone Health Nutrition and

Diabetes Management Center,” “Continually eating late night snacks and meals throws our

bodies out of sync and is directly tied to poor health” (Watts, 2019). Studies on the consumption

of food late at night show: Elevated blood pressure, increased blood sugar, weight gain, and

changes in metabolism are all signs of late-night eating. (Watts, 2019). Watts suggests that if you

are hungry during nighttime, and if it is affecting the quality of sleep, leave two hours between

meal/snack and bedtime (Watts, 2019). She also advises that we eat enough throughout the day
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so that we do not go to bed hungry. Lastly, she concludes by recommending to eat more protein

and fiber instead of sugary and caffeine.

Highschoolers and college students are well known for intemperate consumption of

coffee and other caffeine beverages. A study conducted by the University of Kentucky shows

that 54% of Americans over the age of 18 consume coffee daily, and 78% of college first-year

student consume above the recommended amount of caffeine per day (200mg). These are

reasonable numbers because students love to drink coffee as it can help them stay awake,

contribute to better functioning, and being more productive during the day. “The Effects of

Caffeine on Students” written by Alexis Radhakrishnan includes many examples of students who

have commented on their coffee intake. Senior Katie Hoffman quoted “I drink coffee every

morning because I get three to four hours of sleep a night and then I drink one or two cups just to

help me get through the rest of the day until I can go back to sleep” (Radhakrishnan, 2018). As

stated, Hoffman does not get much sleep, therefore, she has no other choice but to drink her daily

coffee to get her through the day. However, caffeine is an addictive stimulant that students are

becoming more dependent on, not knowing the side effects it can cause. A research published in

"The National Library of Medicine" claims that approximately 80% of the adult population

drinks enough caffeine to influence their brains (Ijaz, 2021). The author mentions that “Long

term use of caffeine blocks adenosine receptors which results in dependency and an overall

tolerance to its effects” (Ijaz, 2021). College students are under tremendous pressure to perform

well in their academics, regardless of the cost to their health as stated by Mishaal Ijaz, the author

of “OPINION: Caffeine dependence detracts from college students’ mental and physical health

(Ijaz, 2021). Students do not realize the harm they are causing to their mental and physical
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health, but rather, they are ignoring it, and this has become a common in today’s generation of

students.

There are ways to improve sleep and leave unhealthy sleeping habits behind. Practicing

and limiting caffeine intake is the first step. Studies shown by “The Journal of Clinical Sleep

Medicine” portrays that caffeine consumption 6 hours before bed can affect sleep. This means

that caffeine should be taken at a minimum of 6 hours before bedtime for better overall sleep. A

study from AASM Sleep Education found that drinking caffeine 6 hours before bedtime

decreased the total sleep time by 1 hour. These effects are shown to be much stronger with age

because the older you are the longer it takes your body to process caffeine (AASM, 2013).

Figure 1.

The graph on figure 1 illustrates a survey of energy drink consumption patterns among

students conducted by the Nutrition Journal, 6 (1), 25. The graph shows that the reasons for

consuming energy drinks are deficient in sleep (67%), and to increase energy (65%).
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Figure 2.

Figure 2 was conducted by NPJ Science of Learning (npj Sci. Learn) ISSN 2056-7936

(online). This chart demonstrates the connection between sleep and academic grades. The results
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concluded that sleep played a significant role in the academic performance in students in the long

term, pre assessment times.

Similarly, Science Writer and Ex Information Specialist for The National Cancer

Institute, Eric Suni’s article “Improve Your Child’s School Performance with a Good Night’s

Sleep,” provides information on what problems are associated with lack of sleep and how to

improve sleep and school performance (Suni, 2021). Suni states that decreased attention,

impaired memory, slowed processing, reduced creativity, worsened sequential thinking are all

problems associated with lack of sleep. Eric Suni quotes “sleep provides a time for memory

encoding, which is when the brain stores and strengthens the recollection of an image or thought.

Without adequate sleep, memories may not be properly formed, and it may also be more difficult

to accurately recall stored information” (Suni, 2021).

In the article, “8 a.m. High School? Sleep Habits of Pandemic Teens Suggest Benefits of

Later Start Times,” Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Bishop University,

Suzanne Hood states that inadequate sleep, again, it is connected to concentration and memory

problems (Hood, 2021). Hood presents data from school boards that have tried with different

school start times. All in all, the studies were successful, students have reported getting more

sleep at night and being less weary in class because of the later start hours. Organizations such as

the “American Pediatric Society and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine” suggest that

schools should avoid classes before 8:30 a.m., based on this research (Hood 2021). Hood

frequently agrees that high schools should not start till at least 8:30 as this can cause many

students that are too tired to engage properly in class, which might lead to weekend binge

napping (Hood, 2021). The early start times of high school helps students get ready for the real
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world, but the negatives outweigh the positives. For the brain to function properly and process

new material being learned, sleep must be a priority and later start times could be an easy fix and

a solution to high school students.

Grades are crucial to a student's success, but sleep deprivation has shown to be harmful in

terms of academic performance. According to NPJ Science of Learning, an individual who has

been up for 17 hours has the same cognitive function as someone who has a blood alcohol

content of 0.05 percent (Okano, 2019). Summarizing the scholarly source written by the Indian

Journal of Health & Wellbeing, explains why sleep deprivation and daytime tiredness are

harmful against students, also how they may lead to worse grades, greater chances of poor

academic performance, trading off learning, mood changes, and other issues (Okano, 2019).

According to NPJ Science of Learning claims “multiple sleep measurements were linked with in-

class performance on quizzes and midterm examinations among 100 students in an introductory

college chemistry class 88 of whom finished the research” (Okano, 2019). In general, higher

grades were linked to greater sleep quality and duration (Okano, 2019). This study looks at the

prevalence of sleep deprivation among college students, the variables that lead to sleep

deprivation, and the value of sleep for improved learning and memory (Okano, 2019). Troubles

with sleep, “which are not addressed as a risk factor for depression and academic failure” should

be evaluated, according to this study (Okano, 2019). Even though multiple survey research has

found links between sleep and cognitive function, quantitative data utilizing objective

measurements to explicitly analyze the link between sleep and school performance is still lacking

as seen in a research article by NPJ Science of Learning (Okano, 2019). Nonetheless, sleep

metrics accounted for 25% of the difference in academic achievement, according to studies

(Okano, 2019). “Sleep length and quality in the month and week before a test were linked to
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greater academic grades” (Okano, 2019). A quarter of the difference in academic achievement

was accounted for by sleep metrics. The study concludes that consistency of good sleep has

shown a positive correlation in terms of academic grades meaning that sleep without a doubt

determines the outcome of better grades.

According to Sleep Physician and Medical Director of the Indiana Sleep Center, Dr.

Abhinav Singh states that there are 4 parts linked to improving sleep hygiene. The first one is

creating a sleep-inducing bedroom. This involves having excellent quality sleep products such as

a good mattress and pillow that will keep you comfortable, avoiding light exposure in the room

that can throw you off your circadian rhythm, keeping the room at a low temperature etc...

Secondly, Optimizing a sleep schedule. Abhinav states that naps can affect our sleep schedules

so it is important to not nap during the day as this can throw you off your sleep schedule. Dr.

Singh suggests giving yourself an extra hour before bedtime, to sleep. The third part consists of

staying away from electronical devices and screen time. Lowering lights in general will help

maintain a natural sleep cycle that will also make it easier to fall asleep overtime. Lastly, Daily

exercise is recommended to throw off the natural energy in our bodies so that we do not struggle

trying to fall asleep at night. Dr. Singh also mentions monitoring the daily caffeine intake.

In conclusion, sleep deprivation is caused by intemperate technology use, excessive

intake of caffeine and late food consumption, leading to the impairment of cognitive function

and resulting in poor academic performance. Teenagers' and college students insufficient sleep,

or sleep deprivation is a major public health concern that has been proven to cause many

problems. Many studies have shown that there are several causes that affect sleep. Too much
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exposure to technological devices, eating food at late times, and caffeine consumption, all

contribute to the causes of sleep deprivation as claimed by many doctors and other professionals.

There are various things that should be done to encourage more sleep positive changes in daily

routines such as limiting technology use, late caffeine intake and unhealthy food consumption.

Professionals such as Dr. Rosenberg claims that if these problems are overlooked, there will be

the following adverse effects, “difficulty remembering things, reduced ability to learn, decreased

attention span, delayed reaction times, irritability and increased risk of depression and other

psychological issues” (Rosenburg, 2020). For this reason, it is crucial to step into encouraging

healthier sleep habits.

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Working Bibliography

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Watts, Kate. “Late-Night Snacks and Better Sleep: How What (and When) You Eat Impacts

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Khemka, Pransh, et al. “Causes of Sleep Deprivation and Its Effect on Performance of Students

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