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Purely Pediatrics
Later School Start Times
p py N Teens
Ha Benefit
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Monthly membership model of
outpatient pediatric medical care –
No copays or deductibles required
~ Newborn home visits ~
Dr. Susan Wiepert
110 C North Seventh St., Lewiston, NY 14092
716-205-3282
www.purelypediatrics.com
T
he Seattle Public Schools announced that it would
reorganize school start times across the district for
the fall of 2016. Elementary schools started earlier,
while most middle and all of the district’s 18 high schools shifted
their opening bell almost an hour later — from 7:50am to 8:45am.
Parents had mixed reactions. Extracurricular activity schedules
changed. School buses were redeployed.
And, as hoped, teenagers used the extra time to sleep in.
In a paper published December 12, 2018, in the journal Sci-
ence Advances, researchers at the University of Washington and
the Salk Institute for Biological Studies announced that teens at
two Seattle high schools got more sleep on school nights after
start times were pushed later — a median increase of 34 minutes
of sleep each night. This boosted the total amount of sleep on
school nights for students from a median of 6 hours and 50 min-
utes, under the earlier start time, to 7 hours and 24 minutes under
the later start time.
The study compared the sleep behaviors of several different
groups of sophomores, all enrolled in biology classes, for differ-
ent two-week periods. The study collected light and activity data
from subjects using wrist activity monitors — rather than relying
solely on self-reported sleep patterns from subjects — to show
that a later school start time benefits adolescents by letting them
sleep longer each night. The study also revealed that the students
Gentle and Caring Dentistry
for Children & Youth Ages 1-21
Pediatric Dentistry
NEW
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LOCATIO
Accepting:
Fidelis & Healthplex
160 Elmwood Ave. • Buffalo, NY
716-436-2130
1660 Hopkins Rd. • Getzville, NY
716-688-7721
APPOINTMENTS AVAILABLE WITHIN 48 HOURS
www.just4mepediatricdentistry.com
52 WNY Family January 2019