Lack of sleep can be dangerous for teens

Asleep at the fair
Competitors in the 4-H cattle show nap alongside their cows at the Minnesota State Fair in Falcon Heights, Minn., on August 26, 2011.
MPR Photo/Nikki Tundel

Teens who sleep less than six hours per night are two to three times more likely to have depression or suicidal thoughts, according to the latest research.

Inadequate sleep also causes teens to have driving reaction times similar to a person with a blood alcohol content of .05.

Experts in adolescent sleep, education and memory will convene Thursday and Friday in Minneapolis to discuss these findings and other recent research.

A researcher and former school administrator join The Daily Circuit to talk about sleep and the teenage brain.