TV or Gaming Before Bed: No Impact on Kids' Sleep Quality

• READ MORE: Children under two years old should not be exposed to screens, according to new regulations in Sweden.

Enabling children to utilize smartphones, tablets, or TV viewing prior to bedtime appears to have minimal effect on their sleep patterns, according to recent research findings.

specialists have frequently sounded the warning about how screen time impacts children's growth.

But scientists in New Zealand , who monitored the screen time of numerous children between ages 11 and 14, discovered that their sleep quality remained unchanged.

Only when they started using their gadgets in bed did it become more difficult for them to drift off to sleep.

Swedish health authorities decided yesterday that preschoolers shouldn’t watch TV or use screens at all, while older children’s screen time ought to be restricted.

Specialists have earlier cautioned that kids who frequently use smartphones, tablets, and computer screens might become more easily irritated, struggle with focus, and retain information for just half as long compared to those who do not spend as much time using these devices.

Research suggests that kids spending extended periods in front of screens may be at higher risk for developing behavioral issues or experiencing challenges during their childhood. depression .

However, the lead researcher and an authority on electronic media and sleep from the University of Otago stated: ' The most intriguing discovery we made was that screen time right before bedtime did not significantly affect their sleep quality that same night.

'However, screen time once in bed did impair their sleep – it stopped them from going to sleep for about half an hour, and reduced the amount of sleep they got that night.'

We should reassess sleep recommendations to align with our modern lifestyle and ensure they are practical and relevant—present guidelines are neither feasible nor suitable for today’s way of life.

In this research, scientists requested 79 participants aged between 11 and 14 years old to wear a body camera attached to their chests from three hours prior to bedtime until they climbed into bed.

In addition to the body-worn camera recording when, what, and how they utilized their devices, a secondary infrared camera was installed in their bedrooms to monitor screen time during bedtime.

They additionally wore an actigraph, a wrist-worn gadget designed to measure sleep patterns.

During a one-week follow-up period, they discovered that 99 percent of participants engaged with screens within the two-hour timeframe preceding bedtime.

In the meantime, over fifty percent of participants reported using screens at least once before bedtime, while approximately one-third continued to use them even after initially attempting to fall asleep.

They found out that once people were in bed, more engaging screen-related activities like gaming and multitasking—using multiple devices simultaneously, for example, watching Netflix on a laptop while playing Xbox—had an even greater negative impact on their sleep quality.

Dr. Brosnan stated, "For every extra 10 minutes of screen time of this kind, their nightly sleep duration decreased nearly proportionally."

Our research indicates that the influence of screen time on sleep mainly stems from displacing time, which postpones when you start sleeping, rather than from the direct impacts of blue light or active interaction.

'No associations were found between sleep latency and wakefulness during the sleeping phase.'

It comes as Yesterday, Sweden's Public Health Authority recommended Parents should avoid letting children under two years old use smartphones and tablets or watch television.

The guidelines suggested that children aged from two to five years old should have their daily screen time capped at one hour.

Children between the ages of six and twelve should limit their daily screen time to one or two hours.

This mirrors a step taken by Danish authorities who introduced age-specific guidelines last September, permitting children under two years old to use these devices exclusively in exceptional circumstances like those with learning disabilities.

In 2019, the World Health Organization recommended that children younger than three years old should avoid watching television or engaging with games on tablets.

The organization stated that children between the ages of three and four should limit their daily screen time to no more than one hour.

At the time, British specialists argued that these guidelines relied on insufficient evidence and did not acknowledge that some forms of screen time could be beneficial for children.

A 2019 report by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health also stated: "We think that the dangers associated with screen time should not be exaggerated."

They included: "There is limited consideration in the literature regarding the growing requirement for students to complete their school assignments on digital devices."

We observe that there is no proof indicating whether homework done on screens has different effects, positive or negative, on health compared to traditional methods.

Children's screen time rocketed during the Covid pandemic, when lockdowns and school closures forced them to stay indoors.

In the United Kingdom, both the NHS and NICE lack specific guidelines regarding screen time for infants and young children.

However, they suggest a ceiling of two hours daily for screen time for all children.

The UK's top medical officer advocates for adopting a 'cautious stance' regarding the use of screen devices.