Study: Sleep deprivation related to poor food choices

Between tests, extracurricular activities and all that texting, it’s no wonder only a quarter of U.S. teens get the recommended eight to 10 hours of sleep each night.

That’s a lot of exhausted, cranky teenagers — and new research in the journal Sleep adds another reason for parents to let their adolescents sleep in as long as possible. Teens who don’t get enough sleep, the study suggests, consume more sugar and carbohydrates, increasing their risk of metabolic disorders, obesity and mental health challenges.

“Getting less sleep caused teens to eat more junk,” Kara Duraccio, a psychology professor at Brigham Young University who was the study’s lead author, said in a release.