There is a wealth of evidence that disrupted sleep and circadian rhythms, which are\ncommon in modern society even during the early stages of life, have unfavorable effects on brain\nfunction. Altered brain function can cause problem behaviors later in life, such as truancy from or\ndropping out of school, quitting employment, and committing suicide. In this review, we discuss\nfindings from several large cohort studies together with recent results of a cohort study using\nthe marshmallow test, which was first introduced in the 1960s. This test assessed the ability of\nfour-year-olds to delay gratification and showed how this ability correlated with success later in life.\nThe role of the serotonergic system in sleep and how this role changes with age are also discussed.\nThe serotonergic system is involved in reward processing and interactions with the dorsal striatum,\nventral striatum, and the prefrontal cortex are thought to comprise the neural basis for behavioral\npatterns that are affected by the quantity, quality, and timing of sleep early in life.
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