Digital Media Use and Sleep Disturbances in Children: Insights From a Cross-Sectional Study

TL;DR

This study finds that more screen time in children is linked to worse sleep quality, with higher screen time leading to more difficulty falling asleep.

Contribution

The study provides new evidence from Saudi Arabia on the dose-dependent relationship between screen time and sleep disturbances in children.

Findings

Children with >4 hours of daily screen time had 3.21 times higher odds of difficulty falling asleep compared to those with <1 hour.

Sleep disturbances were more common in children with chronic medical conditions.

Screen time showed a dose-dependent association with sleep problems, independent of age and gender.

Abstract

Background: Excessive screen time has been increasingly associated with sleep disturbances in children, but data from the Gulf region are limited. This study examined the relationship between daily screen time and sleep quality among school-aged children in Saudi Arabia.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of parents of children aged six to 12 years at primary health care centers in Saudi Arabia. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on daily screen time, sleep disturbances (difficulty falling asleep and night awakenings), and chronic medical conditions. Screen time was categorized as <1 hour, 1-2 hours, 3-4 hours, or >4 hours per day. Associations were assessed using chi-square tests and logistic regression, adjusting for age, gender, and medical conditions.

Results: A total of 500 children were included (mean age: 7.5 years; 260 boys {52.0%}). Difficulty falling asleep was reported in four of 42 children (9.5%) with <1 hour of screen time, compared to 56 of 84 children (66.7%) with >4 hours. Compared with children with <1 hour of screen time, adjusted odds ratios for difficulty falling asleep were 1.43 (95% CI: 1.01-2.03) for 1-2 hours, 1.89 (95% CI: 1.32-2.71) for 3-4 hours, and 3.21 (95% CI: 2.18-4.77) for >4 hours. Sleep disturbances were also more common in children with chronic medical conditions (57 of 139 {41.0%}) than in those without (88 of 361 {24.4%}; OR: 1.50; 95% CI: 1.03-2.19). Age and gender were not significantly associated with sleep outcomes.

Conclusions: Screen time is independently and dose-dependently associated with parent-reported sleep disturbances in children. Reducing screen exposure, particularly in the evening, may help improve sleep quality in this population.