Some 20% of young teenagers are losing sleep because of their social media habits, a new study has found.

According to the findings, one in five young people aged between 12 and 15 admitted to waking up almost every night to check or send messages on social media.

The study involved more than 900 young people, all of whom completed a questionnaire which focused on whether they woke up at night to use social media. The teenagers were also asked about how happy they were.

One in five said that they ‘almost always' wake up during the night to log on. This was more prevalent among girls.

The Welsh researchers also noted that those who regularly used social media during the night were around three times more likely to say they were constantly tired at school compared to young people who did not log on during the night.

Furthermore, those who were constantly tired at school were found to be, on average, much less happy than their peers.

According to the lead researcher, Prof Sally Power, of the Wales Institute for Social and Economic Research, Data and Methods, social media ‘appears to be invading the sanctuary of the bedroom'.

"Our research shows that a small but significant number of children and young people say that they often go to school feeling tired - and these are the same young people who also have the lowest levels of wellbeing. One in five young people questioned woke up every night and over one third wake-up at least once a week to check for messages," she said.

The findings support increasing concerns surrounding the nighttime use of social media by young people, the researchers added.