{"id":37384,"date":"2026-05-21T10:35:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T10:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/?p=37384"},"modified":"2026-05-21T13:01:54","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T13:01:54","slug":"why-young-adults-cant-sleep-or-stay-mentally-well","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/why-young-adults-cant-sleep-or-stay-mentally-well\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Young Adults Can&#8217;t Sleep or Stay Mentally Well"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-blockquote uagb-block-e7eb3fc3 uagb-blockquote__skin-border uagb-blockquote__stack-img-none\"><blockquote class=\"uagb-blockquote\"><div class=\"uagb-blockquote__content\">A new study from the University of Copenhagen maps how stress, screen use, smoking and other factors create self-reinforcing loops that trap young adults in cycles of poor sleep and declining mental health \u2014 and why those cycles are so hard to break.<\/div><footer><div class=\"uagb-blockquote__author-wrap uagb-blockquote__author-at-left\"><\/div><\/footer><\/blockquote><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-content-justification-space-between is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-b0ffac9c wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\"><div style=\"font-size:16px\" class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-post-author\"><div class=\"wp-block-post-author__content\"><p class=\"wp-block-post-author__name\">The University Network<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share uagb-social-share__outer-wrap uagb-social-share__layout-horizontal uagb-block-ee584a31\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-ec619ce7\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"facebook\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path d=\"M504 256C504 119 393 8 256 8S8 119 8 256c0 123.8 90.69 226.4 209.3 245V327.7h-63V256h63v-54.64c0-62.15 37-96.48 93.67-96.48 27.14 0 55.52 4.84 55.52 4.84v61h-31.28c-30.8 0-40.41 19.12-40.41 38.73V256h68.78l-11 71.69h-57.78V501C413.3 482.4 504 379.8 504 256z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-32d99934\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"twitter\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path d=\"M389.2 48h70.6L305.6 224.2 487 464H345L233.7 318.6 106.5 464H35.8L200.7 275.5 26.8 48H172.4L272.9 180.9 389.2 48zM364.4 421.8h39.1L151.1 88h-42L364.4 421.8z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-1d136f14\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?url=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"linkedin\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M416 32H31.9C14.3 32 0 46.5 0 64.3v383.4C0 465.5 14.3 480 31.9 480H416c17.6 0 32-14.5 32-32.3V64.3c0-17.8-14.4-32.3-32-32.3zM135.4 416H69V202.2h66.5V416zm-33.2-243c-21.3 0-38.5-17.3-38.5-38.5S80.9 96 102.2 96c21.2 0 38.5 17.3 38.5 38.5 0 21.3-17.2 38.5-38.5 38.5zm282.1 243h-66.4V312c0-24.8-.5-56.7-34.5-56.7-34.6 0-39.9 27-39.9 54.9V416h-66.4V202.2h63.7v29.2h.9c8.9-16.8 30.6-34.5 62.9-34.5 67.2 0 79.7 44.3 79.7 101.9V416z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you&#8217;ve ever noticed that a rough night&#8217;s sleep makes your anxiety worse, which then makes it harder to sleep, you&#8217;re already familiar with the concept at the center of a major new study. Researchers at the University of Copenhagen have mapped how dozens of biological, psychological and social factors interact to create self-reinforcing &#8220;vicious cycles&#8221; that may keep young adults stuck in patterns of poor sleep and deteriorating mental health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The study, <a href=\"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/article\/10.1186\/s12916-026-04738-7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">published<\/a> in <em>BMC Medicine<\/em>, identifies 29 distinct factors \u2014 ranging from stress and social relationships to nicotine use and bodily inflammation \u2014 and traces 175 causal connections between them. The resulting model reveals not just that sleep and mental health are linked, but how a vast web of reinforcing loops can make it exceedingly difficult for people between the ages of 18 and 40 to improve either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;We know that poor sleep and depressive symptoms often go hand in hand, but with our mapping we now better understand how a range of other mechanisms may potentially keep the problem alive. This gives us a more nuanced picture of why it can be so hard for young people to break out of these self-reinforcing &#8216;vicious cycles,'&#8221; lead author Jeroen Uleman, an assistant professor in the Copenhagen Health Complexity Center at the University of Copenhagen.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How the Cycles Work<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of the clearer examples in the model involves smoking. Nicotine use can contribute to depressive symptoms, which disrupt sleep quality. Fatigued and struggling, a person may then reach for more cigarettes \u2014 only for the nicotine to further damage sleep, which deepens depression, and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;Our model illustrates, for example, how smoking may potentially lead to depressive symptoms, and how these symptoms can disrupt your sleep. You may then smoke more to counter increasing fatigue, while nicotine affects your sleep quality, which again may worsen depressive symptoms. Other loops are even more complex,&#8221; Uleman added.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Smoking is just one thread in a much larger web. Physical inactivity, loneliness, socioeconomic stress and screen habits can each plug into multiple loops simultaneously, compounding the difficulty of any single intervention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why One-Size-Fits-All Solutions Fall Short<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The study pushes back against the popular tendency to blame any single culprit \u2014 smartphones, school schedules, social media \u2014 for the youth mental health crisis. Senior author Naja Hulvej Rod, a professor of epidemiology and director of the Copenhagen Health Complexity Center at the University of Copenhagen, argues the reality is far more tangled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;Instead of focusing only on single causes behind the growing sleep and mental health crises among young adults &#8211; such as smartphone use or how we structure our school system &#8211; our study shows that many factors are involved. And that these factors are tightly interwoven in a complex network that we need to understand in order to figure out how to break these self-reinforcing cycles,&#8221; Rod said in the news release.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To build the model, the research team convened 14 experts across sleep science, psychology, sociology, epidemiology and biology. Those experts proposed factors, evaluated causal relationships, and identified supporting literature. The result is what the researchers call a &#8220;living tool&#8221; \u2014 one designed to be updated as new disciplines and findings are incorporated, including potential environmental and political dimensions not yet captured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why It Matters for Students<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sleep deprivation and mental health struggles are among the most commonly reported challenges on college campuses. For students navigating academic pressure, social transitions, irregular schedules, and often a first foray into independent living, the feedback loops described in this research can feel achingly familiar. Understanding that these cycles are structurally reinforcing \u2014 not a matter of personal willpower \u2014 may itself reframe how students, counselors and campus health officials approach intervention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The researchers acknowledge the model has limitations. The 175 causal connections have not all been validated through systematic reviews or empirical studies of each loop, and expert-driven models carry some risk of subjectivity. The team is explicit that this is a starting point, not a comprehensive explanation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Real-World Applications Already Underway<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The model isn&#8217;t just theoretical. The Copenhagen Health Complexity Center has already partnered with Faaborg-Midtfyn Municipality in Denmark to apply its insights to local youth well-being initiatives. Workshops with municipal practitioners have drawn on the model to inform policy decisions grounded in both lived experience and research evidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;There have already been workshops with practitioners in the municipality, where we provided input from our model. This way, decisions can be made based on both lived experience and scientific evidence. Our hope is that the model can be used in political decision-making processes in municipalities across the country as the public health act is implemented,&#8221; Rod added.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An interactive version of the model is <a href=\"https:\/\/sleepcld.kumu.io\/the-young-adult-sleep-model\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">publicly available online<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:9px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/news.ku.dk\/all_news\/2026\/05\/why-are-young-peoples-sleep-and-mental-health-so-poor-researchers-point-to-vicious-cycles-as-possible-explanation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">University of Copenhagen<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A new study from the University of Copenhagen maps how stress, screen use, smoking and other factors create self-reinforcing loops that trap young adults in cycles of poor sleep and declining mental health \u2014 and why those cycles are so hard to break.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":37538,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"single-no-separators","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[2206,979,1039,635,2204,101,2205],"class_list":["post-37384","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mental-health","tag-copenhagen-health-complexity-center","tag-depression","tag-mental-health","tag-public-health","tag-sleep-health","tag-university-of-copenhagen","tag-young-adults"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/37384-why-young-adults-can8217t-sleep-or-stay-mentally-well.png",1536,1024,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/37384-why-young-adults-can8217t-sleep-or-stay-mentally-well-150x150.png",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/37384-why-young-adults-can8217t-sleep-or-stay-mentally-well-300x200.png",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/37384-why-young-adults-can8217t-sleep-or-stay-mentally-well-768x512.png",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/37384-why-young-adults-can8217t-sleep-or-stay-mentally-well-1024x683.png",1024,683,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/37384-why-young-adults-can8217t-sleep-or-stay-mentally-well.png",1536,1024,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/37384-why-young-adults-can8217t-sleep-or-stay-mentally-well.png",1536,1024,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"The University Network","author_link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/author\/funky_junkie\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"A new study from the University of Copenhagen maps how stress, screen use, smoking and other factors create self-reinforcing loops that trap young adults in cycles of poor sleep and declining mental health \u2014 and why those cycles are so hard to break.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37384","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37384"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37384\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37393,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37384\/revisions\/37393"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37538"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37384"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37384"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37384"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}