Sleep deprivation – What most parents, teachers, and school administrators think of as just part of being a teenager, Rand Corporation sleep scientist Wendy Troxel labels a public health epidemic.  Wendy believes sleep loss in teens isn’t a function of being social or participating in social media. Instead, she argues, it is mostly due to school start times – a matter of public policy.

Dr. Troxel’s research focuses on the interface between sleep, the social environment, health, and on implications for public policy.

Her research is supported by the Department of Defense and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health.  

As an active clinical psychologist, Dr. Troxel helps patients overcome sleep disorders through behavioral (nonpharmacologic) treatment. She was the founding director of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine–an accredited training program in Behavioral Sleep Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh. She continues to provide research and clinical training opportunities for graduate and postdoctoral students interested in sleep medicine. She also holds leadership roles in several professional sleep societies, is an Associate Editor for the journal “Sleep Health”, and has been involved in local and national efforts focused on healthy school start times for adolescents.

In this TED talk, Dr. Troxel discusses issues with chronically sleep deprived students and shares the benefits of student health and performance when adolescents sleep longer.

Watch the full video below.