Deep sleep is very important during puberty
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Deep sleep is one of the most important factors in the process of puberty, so it is very important that adolescents can get enough sleep, according to research results published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (JCEM).
The pubertal period is the age when a person becomes an adult and is capable of procreation. Each person has this process individually. Different factors affect puberty: the environment, genetic heredity, taste preferences, social influence, and, of course, sleep.
The onset of puberty in girls begins at the age of 8-13 years, in boys a little later - at 9-14 years.
The changes experienced by adolescents during this period are caused by processes occurring in the brain. As it turned out, during sleep, the active work of those parts of the brain that are responsible for the management and development of these processes.
As we know, sleep is divided into two phases - fast and slow. Slow (deep) sleep is the phase when we are "visited" by dreams, which are less coherent and vivid than during fast sleep.
"If those parts of the brain that activate the reproductive system depend on deep sleep, then we need to worry that the lack or disturbance of sleep in children and adolescents can interfere with the normal process of puberty. This is especially true for children who have been diagnosed with sleep disorders. According to recent studies, most adolescents sleep much less than their body needs for normal functioning and development, "says the doctor of medical sciences, an employee of the Massachusetts General Hospital and Boston Children's Hospital and lead author of the study Natalie Shaw.
The specialists analyzed the secretion of luteinizing hormone (which is crucial in the development of testosterone in men and in the process of ovulation in girls), as well as its dependence on sleep stages in children aged 9 to 15 years.
It turned out that the synthesis of the greatest number of hormones occurs precisely during the phase of deep sleep.
This gives reason to believe that deep sleep has a direct impact on the process of puberty teenagers.
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