Electronic media use and insomnia complaints in German adolescents: gender differences in use patterns and sleep problems

Abstract

Electronic media play an important role in the everyday lives of children and adolescents and have been shown to be associated with sleep problems. The objective of this study was to assess the associations between time spent using different electronic media and insomnia complaints (IC) in German adolescents with particular respect to gender differences in use patterns and associations with IC. Cross-sectional data of a weighted total of 7533 adolescents aged 11-17 stem from the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS study) that was conducted from 2003 to 2006. The assessment of IC and time spent using different electronic media (television, computer/internet, video games, total screen time, mobile phones, and music) was included in a self-report questionnaire. Binary logistic regression analyses were performed to assess associations between time spent per day with each electronic media and IC. Age, SES, emotional problems (anxiety/depression) and presence of a medical condition were considered as covariates in the adjusted model. Boys and girls were considered separately. For boys: computer/internet use of ≥3 h/d (AOR = 2.56, p < 0.05) and total screen time of ≥8 h/d (AOR = 2.45, p < 0.01) were associated with IC in users. Playing video games for 0.5-2 h/d reduced the odds for IC (AOR = 0.60, p < 0.05) compared to nonusers. For girls: Listening to music for ≥3 h/d was associated with IC (AOR = 4.24, p < 0.05) compared to non-listeners. Everyday use of electronic media devices is associated with IC in adolescents. Clinicians dealing with adolescents referred for sleep problems should be aware of gender-specific patterns of media use and sleep problems.

Association between insomnia and social network site use in Indonesian adolescents

“…Thus, online activity on SNS exceeds the planned time, which causes increased exposure to light emitted from mobile devices. The light emitted from mobile devices can interfere with the circadian rhythm and decrease melatonin secretion, causing an individual to have sleeping difficulties, which could lead to sleep deprivation and insomnia.…”

Prevalence among adolescents in Bergen, Western Norway, of temporomandibular disorders according to the DC/TMD criteria and examination protocol

“…Electronic devices like smartphones and PCs are used for extensive time periods every day, both in school and during leisure time [29]. It has been hypothesized that there is an association between excessive use (> 4 hours a day) of electronic devices and the presence of headache and insomnia [29,30].…”

Social Media Use and Sleep Quality among Adults: The Role of Gender, Age and Social Media Checking Habit

“…Studies have reported significant gender differences in social media use among adolescents and adults (Smith & Anderson, 2018), and that females display more intense use than males in general (Frison & Eggermont, 2016;McAndrew & Jeong, 2012), yet other studies noted no gender difference for social media use among adults (Bhat et al, 2018). Significant gender differences are documented in terms of sleep as well (Mallampalli & Carter, 2014) and the association between different types of electronic media use and sleep complaints have been shown to differ for adolescent boys and girls (Lange et al, 2017). Both social media use and sleep (Ohayon, Carskadon, Guilleminault, & Vitiello, 2004;Smith & Anderson, 2018) are strongly related to age and age also significantly moderated the relationship between bedtime mobile phone use, sleep duration and fatigue among adults (Exelmans & Van den Bulck, 2016b).…”