Digital Media and Sleep in Childhood and Adolescence

Abstract

Given the pervasive use of screen-based media and the high prevalence of insufficient sleep among American youth and teens, this brief report summarizes the literature on electronic media and sleep and provides research recommendations. Recent systematic reviews of the literature reveal that the vast majority of studies find an adverse association between screen-based media consumption and sleep health, primarily via delayed bedtimes and reduced total sleep duration. The underlying mechanisms of these associations likely include: (a) time displacement (i.e., time spent on screens replaces time spent sleeping and other activities); (b) psychological stimulation based on media content; and (c) the effects of light emitted from devices on circadian timing, sleep physiology, and alertness. Much of our current understanding of these processes, however, is limited by cross-sectional, observational, and self-reported data. Further experimental and observational research is needed to elucidate how the digital revolution is altering sleep and circadian rhythms across development (infancy to adulthood) as pathways to poor health, learning, and safety outcomes (e.g., obesity, depression, risk taking).

Excessive use of mobile devices and children's physical health

“…The most widely supported physical health correlates of traditional media use, such as TV viewing, computer usage, and video game play, are child obesity (Robinson et al, ) and poorer sleep health (LeBourgeois et al, ). Mechanisms linking TV time, specifically, to child obesity include exposure to advertisements, food consumption while viewing TV, and disrupted sleep (Robinson et al, ).…”

“…In particular, musculoskeletal pain and discomfort from utilizing smartphones and tablets have been identified as health risks relevant to handheld devices (e.g., Berolo, Wells, & Amick III, ; Ning, Huang, Hu, & Nimbarte, ). In addition, light emitted from smartphones has been recognized as disruptive of melatonin secretion (LeBourgeois et al, ), instrumental for sleep onset. Thus, in addition to examining previously identified physical health correlates of traditional media, this review will also include other domains of physical health that are unique to the design and features of mobile media.…”

Racial Disparities in Obesity Treatment

“…Factors including living in noisier environments, being exposed to stress and violence, children sleeping with parents and/or siblings, sub- par bedding, inconsistent bedtime routines, and early exposure to TV are all factors that may explain decreased sleep among disadvantaged children [51]. Lower obesity risk has been associated with childhood and adolescent healthy sleep patterns [52]. Therefore, decreased sleep quality in racial/ethnic minorities may be another underlying cause of increased obesity.…”

Conceptual skills and verbal abilities were better in children aged six to seven years who were from more highly educated families and attended sports clubs

“…Screen time and PA have been identified as health-related behaviours which are established during early childhood and tend to track into middle childhood (21). Despite the pervasive use of screen-based media and the high prevalence of insufficient sleep observed in children in many countries (27), we have to consider that the average sleep duration of nearly 10 hours per day observed by our study was sufficient for this age group (28). It was still unexpected that sleep duration correlated negatively with the scores of conceptual skills and verbal abilities in the present study.…”