Sleep Deprivation

However, with several high school students, only a few hours of sleep is gotten every night and this sleep deprivation is physically and mentally detrimental to the student. Sleep has an important role in human health. Obtaining the recommended quantity and quality sleep at the proper times helps in protecting human safety, mental and physical health. During sleep, the body heals and revitalises damaged cells, the cardiovascular system is rejuvenated and toxins accumulated during waking hours are disposed of. Sleep also encourages learning and memory and plays a crucial role in appetite and regulating mood. Sleeping well helps to boost brain function for the next day because when sleep is in process the nervous system is relaxed so the brain

The amount of sleep an individual requires each night differs from every person, however it is recommended for teenagers ages 14-17 and young adults ages 18-25 on average obtain eight to ten hours of sleep each night. Yet obtaining this amount of sleep is rare amongst teenagers as a result of the various sleep disturbances such as external lights from electronic devices such as phones or computers, alarm clocks or caffeinated drinks interferes with the circadian rhythm, the natural sleep and wake cycle of the body. When sleep deprivation occurs, the body knocked out of sync and becomes a risk to personal safety and wellbeing as well as reducing personal safety. Understanding the effects of sleep deprivation on the body and mind is crucial to this project. Sleep deprivation has been shown to negatively impact memory and many cognitive, physiological and behavioral measures within the body. Since many students pull all-nighters for academic purposes, it may be important to understand if there is a relationship between sleep deprivation and cognitive and memory

The Haylings Test is a measure of response initiation and response suppression. It consists of 10 sentences, each having the last word omitted. In the first part of the test, each sentence is read aloud and the participant has to simply complete the sentences, producing a measure of response initiation speed. For example, “The dough was put in the hot…(subject says) oven”. In the second part, the subject is asked to complete the sentences with a word that renders the sentence meaningless, giving measures of response suppression ability and thinking time. For example, “Vegetarians and vegans do not eat…(patient says) basketball.” Therefore the patient has to inhibit the strongly activated response, which in this case will be “meat” before generating a new response. The test exercises the prefrontal cortical regions that are responsible for inhibiting thoughts and