Daily touchscreen use in infants and toddlers is associated with reduced sleep and delayed sleep onset

TLDR

Screen time has been linked to sleep problems in older children, and the rise of portable touchscreen devices may extend this risk to infants and toddlers, though empirical evidence is lacking. The study investigates whether the frequency of touchscreen use is associated with sleep patterns in children aged 6–36 months. An online survey of 715 parents collected data on child media use, sleep duration, sleep onset, and night awakenings. Structural equation modeling revealed that touchscreen use is significantly associated with reduced nighttime and daytime sleep and delayed sleep onset, but not with night awakenings, marking the first report of such a link in infants and toddlers.

Abstract

Abstract Traditional screen time (e.g. TV and videogaming) has been linked to sleep problems and poorer developmental outcomes in children. With the advent of portable touchscreen devices, this association may be extending down in age to disrupt the sleep of infants and toddlers, an age when sleep is essential for cognitive development. However, this association has not been demonstrated empirically. This study aims to examine whether frequency of touchscreen use is associated with sleep in infants and toddlers between 6 and 36 months of age. An online survey was administered to 715 parents reporting on child media use (daily exposure to TV and use of touchscreens), sleep patterns (night-time and daytime sleep duration, sleep onset - time to fall asleep, and frequencies of night awakenings). Structural equation models controlling for age, sex, TV exposure and maternal education indicated a significant association between touchscreen use and night-time sleep, daytime sleep and sleep onset. No significant effect was observed for the number of night awakenings. To our knowledge, this is the first report linking the use of touchscreen with sleep problems in infants and toddlers. Future longitudinal studies are needed to clarify the direction of effects and the mechanisms underlying these associations using detailed sleep tracking.