Insufficient Sleep is Associated With Increasing Trends in Adolescent Suicidal Behaviors

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Adolescent Psychology
• Sleep Medicine

Background:

• Youth suicide is a growing global public health concern.
• Identifying modifiable risk factors like sleep is crucial for intervention.
• Adolescent sleep patterns are often disrupted, impacting mental health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between insufficient sleep and trends in suicidal behaviors among adolescents.
• To examine disparities in these trends based on sex, age, and race/ethnicity.

Main Methods:

• Utilized biennial data from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (2007-2019).
• Employed joinpoint and logistic regression models to analyze trends and associations.
• Examined suicidal ideation and suicide plans in relation to sleep duration.

Main Results:

• Insufficient sleep correlated with increased suicidal ideation and plans from 2007-2019.
• These trends were more pronounced in female, younger, and non-White adolescents.
• No significant increase in suicidal behaviors was observed among adolescents with sufficient sleep, except for White adolescents with a suicide plan.

Conclusions:

• Insufficient sleep is disproportionately associated with increasing suicidal behaviors in specific adolescent subgroups.
• Interventions promoting sufficient sleep may be a key strategy to mitigate youth suicide risks.
• Further research into sleep disparities and suicide prevention is warranted.