Summary: Teenagers who sleep less or experience frequent night awakenings are significantly more likely to attempt suicide later in adolescence, according to a major longitudinal study. Researchers analyzed data from more than 8,500 teens and found that poor sleep at age 14 predicted suicide attempts by age 17, even after accounting for other mental health risk factors.
The study revealed that shorter sleep duration and fragmented sleep were stronger predictors than depressive symptoms. Improving sleep patterns in teens could therefore serve as a crucial and practical target for suicide prevention.
Key Facts:
- Long-Term Risk: Teens who slept less or had disrupted sleep at 14 were more likely to attempt suicide by age 17.
- Independent Predictor: Sleep problems remained a strong risk factor even after adjusting for mental health and self-harm history.
- Protective Role: Rational decision-making skills reduced suicide risk, but the effect weakened under chronic sleep disruption.
Source: University of Warwick
Teenagers who don’t get enough sleep on school nights or have interrupted sleep are at greater risk of suicide, new research from the University of Warwick has found.
Suicide is the one of the leading causes of death among adolescents in the UK. Despite teenagers’ well-known tendency to miss out on sleep—due to both biological and social factors—the long-term impact of this sleep loss on suicide risk has remained unclear.
Now, researchers at the University of Warwick have demonstrated a longitudinal link between disrupted sleep in early adolescence and later suicide attempts, for the first time in the context of risk-taking and decision making.
The new study, published in Sleep Advances, analysed data from more than 8,500 young people in the Millennium Cohort Study. It was found that adolescents who reported a suicide attempt at age 17 were more likely to have had shorter time in bed on school days and disrupted sleep at age 14.
Michaela Pawley, PhD Candidate in the Department of Psychology at University of Warwick said: “Adolescence is a crucial developmental period where both sleep problems and suicide risk tend to emerge.
“Our findings show that adolescents who experience difficulties maintaining and obtaining sufficient sleep are more likely to report a suicide attempt several years later. Poor sleep is not just a symptom of wider difficulties, but a significant risk factor in its own right. Addressing sleep problems could form a vital part of suicide prevention strategies.”
The key findings from the team at Warwick include:
- Shorter total time in bed on school days and more frequent night awakenings at 14 years of age were associated with an increased likelihood of reporting attempted suicide at 17 years.
- These associations held even after accounting for established suicide risk factors such as socioeconomic status, self-harm history, and mental health difficulties.
- Shorter total time in bed on school days and more frequent night awakenings were stronger risk factors compared to depressive symptoms and other established psychosocial risk factors.
The researchers were the first to explore how cognitive factors may influence this relationship. They found that teenagers with stronger rational decision-making skills appeared protected against the impact of night awakenings on suicide risk —although this protective effect diminished with frequent sleep disruption. This opens the question of what other factors may interplay with sleep to confer adolescent suicide risk.
Senior author Professor Nicole Tang, Director of Warwick Sleep and Pain Lab at the University of Warwick added: “We need to recognise that sleep deprivation and fragmentation are not trivial complaints – they can wear your defences down and drive actions or behaviours that have life-or-death consequences. If we can better identify and support teenagers struggling with sleep, we may be able to reduce suicide attempts.”
The researchers note that while insufficient sleep likely contributes to difficulties in cognitive functioning like decision-making, further studies are needed to fully understand these pathways. Nonetheless, the findings provide a basis for identifying teens most at risk of the poorest outcomes and highlight the potential of increasing sleep time on school nights as a practical target for suicide prevention in young people.
Study Details
- The study used data from the Millennium Cohort Study waves 6 and 7, covering adolescents at ages 14 and 17 (n=8,524).
- Sleep variables included time in bed on school and non-school days, sleep onset latency, frequency of night awakenings, and social jetlag.
- Suicide attempt was measured through self-report at age 17.
- Risk-taking and decision-making were assessed using the Cambridge Gambling Task.
- Paper title: Sleep Problems, Decision-Making, and Suicide Attempts During Adolescence: A Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study. DOI: 10.1093/sleepadvances/zpaf062
If you have been affected by the issues raised in this report and need support:
Children and young people affected by mental health issues can find support, information, and details about their local NHS mental health services at www.youngminds.org.uk/find-help or call Childline on 0800 1111.
For adults, whether you are concerned about yourself or a loved one, you can find local NHS urgent mental health helplines and a list of mental health charities, organisations and support groups offering expert advice, on the NHS website at: www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/mental-health-helplines/ or call Samaritans on 116 123.
About The Millennium Cohort Study (MCS)
The MCS is following 19,517 young people born across the UK in 2000-01, building a uniquely detailed portrait of the children of the new century. The MCS is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and a consortium of government departments and managed by the UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies at the UCL Social Research Institute.
Key Questions Answered:
A: Disrupted or insufficient sleep weakens emotional regulation and decision-making, increasing vulnerability to suicidal behavior in adolescence.
A: Yes — this study found that sleep problems predicted suicide attempts even more strongly than depressive symptoms or psychosocial difficulties.
A: Researchers believe so. Promoting better sleep hygiene and identifying teens with chronic sleep disruption could become key suicide prevention strategies.
About this sleep and suicide research news
Author: Matt Higgs
Source: University of Warwick
Contact: Matt Higgs – University of Warwick
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Open access.
“Sleep Problems, Decision-Making, and Suicide Attempts During Adolescence: A Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study” by Michaela Pawley et al. SLEEP Advances
Abstract
Sleep Problems, Decision-Making, and Suicide Attempts During Adolescence: A Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study
Study Objectives
Sleep problems have been identified as a risk factor for suicidal thoughts and behaviors during adolescence, yet a lack of longitudinal mechanistic investigation into contributing factors (e.g. cognitive functioning) limits understanding of the temporality and specificity of this relationship. This study investigates the impact of sleep problems on subsequent reported suicide attempt, and whether risk-taking and decision-making moderate this relationship.
Methods
This analysis utilized data from waves 6 (14 years) and 7 (17 years) in the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS; n = 8524, female = 4369 [51.26 per cent]), a UK population-representative longitudinal study of youth born between 2000 and 2002. Self-reported sleep items assessed at 14 years were used to calculate total time in bed on school and non-school nights, social jetlag, sleep onset latency, and frequency of night awakenings. Self-reported attempting suicide was measured at 17 years. The Cambridge Gambling Task assessed risk-taking and decision-making at 14 years.
Results
Shorter total time in bed on school days (OR = 0.88; 95% CI = 0.80 to 0.96; p = .004) and more frequent night awakenings (OR = 1.15; 95% CI = 1.07 to 1.23; p ≤ .001) were prospectively associated with subsequent reported suicide attempt, even when controlling for demographic and clinical covariates. Rational decision-making (OR = 2.12; 95% CI = 1.33 to 3.37; p = .002) moderated the association between night awakenings and attempted suicide.
Conclusions
Shorter total time in bed and more frequent night awakenings heightened suicide risk in adolescents, and this latter relationship was modified by rational decision-making. These results provide insight into the etiology of adolescent suicide behavior and highlight sleep deprivation and fragmentation as potential preventative targets for suicide attempts.
