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New research shows that reducing teenagers' screen time can improve their sleep.
Research shows that an exposure to too much light at night – especially the blue light of smartphones, tablets and computers – can affect the brain's clock and the production of melatonin, a sleep hormone, resulting in a reduced time and quality of sleep.
Blocking blue light
The problem is thought to be more serious in children and adolescents than in adults. This study by researchers in the Netherlands focused on the effects of screen time on teenagers' sleep.
On average, teens who spent more than four hours a day watching a screen took 30 minutes longer to sleep, woke up 30 minutes later, and had more signs of sleep loss, including 39, mood, fatigue and low concentration, as teenagers under study revealed an hour a day screen.
The researchers then evaluated how blocking blue light with glbades and prohibiting time spent in front of a screen at night had an effect on the sleep habits of 25 frequent screen users.
After only a week, teenagers had fewer signs of sleep loss – they fell asleep and woke up 20 minutes earlier.
Increased risk of obesity, diabetes and heart disease
"Here, we show very simply that these sleep complaints can be easily resolved by minimizing the use of the evening screen or exposure to blue light," said the author of the study, Dirk Jan Stenvers, in a press release. "Based on our data, it is likely that complaints about teenagers' sleep and sleep latency are at least partly due to the blue light on the screens."
He is a clinical researcher in the Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism at the Medical and Research Center of Amsterdam UMC.
The next step is to determine whether reducing screen time improves sleep over the long term and whether adults benefit from the same benefits.
"Sleep disorders start with minor symptoms of fatigue and low concentration, but in the long run, we know that sleep loss is badociated with an increased risk of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease," he said. Stenvers said. "If we can now introduce simple measures to tackle this problem, we can avoid new health problems in the coming years."
The study was presented at the annual meeting of the European Society of Endocrinology in Lyon, France. Research presented at meetings is generally considered preliminary until it is published in a peer-reviewed journal.
Image credit: iStock
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