Apodaca: Young minds need quality sleep. A later school start is helping.

When California passed a first-of-its-kind law in 2019 mandating that middle schools begin their regular instruction day no earlier than 8 a.m. and high schools start no earlier than 8:30 a.m., I was inclined to see it as a positive step.

Now there is some evidence emerging that shows it is producing the hoped-for benefits.

Public schools were given until the 2022-2023 school year to make any necessary changes to ensure their compliance with the mandate, which was prompted by growing awareness and concern that beginning the school day too early was resulting in serious negative effects on adolescents.

I witnessed this firsthand when my two sons were students in Newport-Mesa Unified schools. They each, during their final two years of high school, started school at 6:55 a.m.— which was, at the time, the indecently early starting bell for “zero period.” This was the only option for them to enroll in the advanced placement classes they had chosen.

After school, they played sports and engaged in a few other extracurricular activities. Then, of course, there was homework, which was considerable. Most nights they got far less than the eight to 10 hours of sleep recommended for teenagers. Indeed, their sleep deprivation was chronic, and I often worried it would break them.

I’ll never forget the time when one son, whose exhaustion was so deep that he sometimes slept through his alarm, asked me to make sure he woke up on time. When I tried to rouse him he sat bolt upright in bed, blurted out “In the 18th century!” — then fell back on his pillow, sound asleep yet apparently still processing his AP history studies. He recalled none of this later.

So yes, I was in favor of the law when it passed. Not everyone agreed. There was pushback from many parents at the time, who argued that later start times would complicate school drop-off arrangements, push sports and other after-school activities later, and result in even later bedtimes. Some critics objected that the law subverted local control, contending that districts should be free to make such decisions based on specific community needs.

The mandate is still not universally loved. But now a group of academic researchers, in a study presented in a National Bureau of Economic Research working paper, found that the law has had the intended beneficial effects. Students are getting more sleep, having fewer mental health issues, and are improving their math and English scores, they concluded.

There will be other studies, I’m sure. But if these findings hold up, they represent a significant outcome, one that could lead to enhanced appreciation of the importance of sleep, and to additional steps to ensure that kids are getting the quantity and quality sleep that their youthful minds and bodies need.

The science has been clear for a long time: Sleep is one of the three fundamental pillars of good health, right up there with exercise and diet. It’s more than just a period of rest; adequate sleep time is critical to brain function, metabolism, immune health, and emotional regulation. That goes for everyone, all ages.

Yet the teenage years are are particularly crucial. It’s a time of rapid physical, mental and emotional growth, when more sleep is necessary for healthy development. Circadian rhythms change during this period, making it harder for teens to fall asleep and wake up early. When school starts before their brains are fully awake and engaged, learning becomes compromised.

Research shows that sleep-deprived teens are more likely to struggle academically; to be involved in accidents; and to suffer from mental health issues, including self-harming behavior, suicide, depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, inattention and substance abuse.

To be clear, the mandate is far from a perfect solution. Many schools still have zero periods, meaning that some high school students are beginning their school day at about 7:30 a.m. — still too early.

It should also be noted that the law didn’t change the minimum number of instructional minutes required. Many teens still have overloaded schedules.

When I contacted Newport-Mesa Unified spokesperson Annette Franco to ask about impacts from the mandate, her written response was: “We have been operating under the later school start times for several years, and at this point, they are part of our regular school schedules and operations. We have not seen any significant impacts, positive or negative, that we can specifically attribute to this.”

Serious impediments to teens’ achieving adequate sleep remain. Chief among them is too much screen time, which interferes with a person’s ability to fall asleep. The light emanating from screens can prevent the release of melatonin, a natural chemical that helps people feel sleepy. Using devices can also release dopamine, which can promote a wakeful state.

We’ve made a start. But there’s still plenty of work to be done to move the needle further when it comes to ensuring teens are getting enough sleep during these pivotal years.