The Impact of Screens on Your Child’s Sleep: Understanding the Real Issues
Mobile phones offer endless entertainment, connectivity, and informationâbut they can also be intrusive, keeping us up when we should be resting. This issue is becoming more prominent for children, with increasing concerns about how screen time affects their sleep.
As parents, itâs easy to spot the signs: children staying up late, having trouble winding down, or complaining about being tired during the day. A recent study of 11,875 US children aged nine to 10 explored how screen time affects mental health, behaviour, school performance, sleep, and friendships. The results indicate that more screen time is mildly linked to worse mental health, more behaviour problems, lower academic performance, and poorer sleep, but slightly better peer relationships.
Understanding the Impact of Screen Time on Sleep
While blue light has long been blamed for sleep disruptions, the latest research suggests that the real problem is more complex. The issue isnât just the light emitted from screensâitâs how devices keep children alert at bedtime and shift their bedtimes later as they scroll through social media, play games, or watch videos.
Studies have found that the more time children spend on their phones, the later their bedtimes get and the less sleep they get overall; those children who kept their phones on at nightâespecially with notifications activeâhad worse sleep quality and stayed up later.
How Phones Keep Your Child Awake
Phones can stimulate your childâs brain, making it difficult for them to fall asleep. Instead of winding down, theyâre getting caught in a cycle of watching âjust one more episodeâ or scrolling through social media, which pushes bedtime later and later.
But itâs not just the amount of time they spend on devices that matter. The content theyâre engaging with is equally important. Reading or seeing upsetting messages, or getting involved in emotionally charged content, can further disrupt their ability to relax and fall asleep. Even âfunâ content can spark excitement or lead to overthinking, which makes it harder to settle down.
Setting Boundaries to Improve Your Childâs Sleep
As parents, you have the power to set healthy boundaries around screen time that can greatly improve your childâs sleep.
Here are some practical tips:
- Set Clear âHouse Rulesâ for Screen Time: From the moment your child gets their first phone, make it clear that devices do not belong in the bedroom. This helps avoid late-night scrolling and phone distractions.
- Create a Charging Station Outside the Bedroom: Keep phones and other devices in a common area, like the kitchen or living room, to prevent them from interfering with sleep.
- Lead by Example: Children are more likely to follow rules when they see their parents practising them. Limit your own screen time before bed, and youâll set a great example for your child.
- Establish a Screen-Free Wind-Down Time: Aim for an hour or two without screens before bed. Use this time for activities like reading, drawing, or doing a relaxing puzzle to help your child wind down.
- Support Late-Night Study Needs: If your child needs to study late or use devices for schoolwork, consider having a cut-off time at least an hour before bedtime.
- Create a Relaxing Bedtime Routine: Dim the lights an hour before bedtime to signal to your childâs body that itâs time to wind down. Studies show that even just four minutes of bright light at the wrong time can delay melatonin production by up to 90 minutes, making it harder to fall asleep.
Why Leading by Example Matters
It can be hard to convince children to change their habits, especially when theyâre used to having their phones at all times. However, setting clear rules and leading by example can make a big difference. If your child is already struggling with sleep, have an open conversation about how devices and screen time might be affecting their rest. Helping them understand the importance of healthy sleep habitsâand supporting them in sticking to themâcan lead to better sleep quality for the whole family.
For more on teens sleep, see our blogs on:
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Back-to-School Sleep Tips
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Why Sleep is Essential For Learning
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Is Your Teen Getting the Sleep They Need?
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Why Sleep is Essential for Teens’ Health and WellbeingÂ
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Relaxation Techniques to Help with Bedtime
Written by Mandy Gurney. RGN.RM.Dip HV February 2025
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