Association between insufficient sleep and suicidal ideation among adolescents

Abstract

The objective of this study was to examine the association between insufficient sleep and suicidal ideation among adolescents. Data for this study came from the 2017 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System. A sample of 13,659 adolescents aged 14-18 years (51.8% female) were analyzed using logistic regression with suicidal ideation as the outcome variable and insufficient sleep as the main explanatory variable. Of the 13,659 adolescents, 2,409 representing 17.6% experienced suicidal ideation during the past 12 months and three out of four adolescents (75.2%) had insufficient sleep on an average school night. Controlling for all other predictors, the odds of experiencing suicidal ideation were 1.35 times higher for adolescents who had insufficient sleep relative to those who had sufficient sleep on an average school night (AOR = 1.35, 95% CI = 1.16-1.58). Other factors associated with suicidal ideation include female gender, sexual minority, history of traditional bullying and cyberbullying victimization, feeling sad or hopeless, being slightly or very overweight, and substance use. Physical activity was inversely associated with suicidal ideation. School counselors, clinicians, and practitioners should consider adequate sleep as an important intervention in suicide prevention.

Keywords: Adolescents; Insufficient sleep; Risk behaviors; Suicidal ideation.