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United States Value:
Percentage of children ages 6-17 who sleep recommended age-appropriate hours on most weeknights (2-year estimate)
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Percentage of children ages 6-17 who sleep recommended age-appropriate hours on most weeknights (2-year estimate)
Percentage of children ages 6-17 who sleep recommended age-appropriate hours on most weeknights (2-year estimate)
Percentage of children ages 6-17 who sleep recommended age-appropriate hours on most weeknights (2-year estimate)
National Survey of Children's Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB)
Percentage of children ages 6-17 who sleep recommended age-appropriate hours on most weeknights (2-year estimate)
National Survey of Children's Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB)
US Value: 66.6%
Top State(s): Minnesota: 76.8%
Bottom State(s): Louisiana: 51.4%
Definition: Percentage of children ages 6-17 who sleep recommended age-appropriate hours on most weeknights (2-year estimate)
Data Source and Years: National Survey of Children's Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB), 2020-2021
Suggested Citation: America's Health Rankings analysis of National Survey of Children's Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB), United Health Foundation, AmericasHealthRankings.org, accessed 2023.
Sleep is critical for brain and body functions, including the immune system, hormonal and metabolic systems, cognition and emotion. Sleep also helps heal the body, repair blood vessels and regenerate cells. In children, adequate sleep helps prevent poor mental health, attention problems, injuries, obesity and diabetes.
For years, it was believed that people needed less sleep as they developed from infancy to adulthood; however, recent research shows that teenagers need more sleep than they did as children or will as adults. School start times often do not align with adolescent sleep needs. Add a students' homework load — one report revealed an average of three hours of homework per weeknight — and only 6.6% of teenagers are getting the recommended nine hours of sleep per night.
Not getting adequate sleep is associated with higher rates of:
For adolescents, adequate sleep is associated with better academic performance and lower risk of unsafe behaviors and car accidents.
The prevalence of adequate sleep among children ages 4 months to 17 years is higher among:
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers tips for parents to improve their children’s sleep:
Healthy People 2030 has a goal to increase the proportion of children who get sufficient sleep.
Pizza, Fabio, Sara Contardi, Alessandro Baldi Antognini, Maroussa Zagoraiou, Matteo Borrotti, Barbara Mostacci, Susanna Mondini, and Fabio Cirignotta. 2010. “Sleep Quality and Motor Vehicle Crashes in Adolescents.” Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine: JCSM: Official Publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine 6 (1): 41–45.
Quist, Jonas S., Anders Sjödin, Jean-Philippe Chaput, and Mads F. Hjorth. 2016. “Sleep and Cardiometabolic Risk in Children and Adolescents.” Sleep Medicine Reviews 29 (October): 76–100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2015.09.001.
Short, Michelle A., Sarah Blunden, Gabrielle Rigney, Lisa Matricciani, Scott Coussens, Chelsea M. Reynolds, and Barbara Galland. 2018. “Cognition and Objectively Measured Sleep Duration in Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” Sleep Health 4 (3): 292–300. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleh.2018.02.004.
Weaver, Matthew D., Laura K. Barger, Susan Kohl Malone, Lori S. Anderson, and Elizabeth B. Klerman. 2018. “Dose-Dependent Associations Between Sleep Duration and Unsafe Behaviors Among US High School Students.” JAMA Pediatrics 172 (12): 1187. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2018.2777.
America’s Health Rankings builds on the work of the United Health Foundation to draw attention to public health and better understand the health of various populations. Our platform provides relevant information that policymakers, public health officials, advocates and leaders can use to effect change in their communities.
We have developed detailed analyses on the health of key populations in the country, including women and children, seniors and those who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces, in addition to a deep dive into health disparities across the country.