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V.Balasubramani
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Smartphones, computers tied to sleeping problems in teens
London: Excessive use of smartphones and computers throughout the day can worsen the quality of sleep at night in teens, a new study has found.
Researchers followed almost 10,000 teens, ages 16 to 19, in Norway and found that the longer teens spent using electronic devices throughout the day, the worse their quality of sleep.
Adolescents who reported using screens for more than four hours had a 49 per cent greater risk of taking longer than an hour to fall asleep.
Those who used a computer, smartphone or mp3 player during the hour before bed were significantly more likely to take longer than an hour to fall asleep.
"The current recommendation is not to have a TV in the bedroom. It seems, however, that there may be other electronic devices exerting the same negative influence on sleep, such as personal computers and mobile phones," researchers said in the journal BMJ Open.
"The results confirm recommendations for restricting media use in general," they said.
Researchers in the study asked teenagers about their use of computers, smartphones, mp3 players, tablets, game consoles and televisions.
They also asked them about their sleeping routines and how much sleep they needed to feel rested.
Read more at: Smartphones, computers tied to sleeping problems in teens | News Today
