Is It True That Screen Time Doesn't Impact Kids' Sleep Until They're Actually in Bed With a Screen?

The effects of screens and screen time on children are a hot topic these days. Since screens are relatively new to our world, parents are often at odds about the best way to handle devices that they never had during their childhood. It can be hard to know the right answer to some more ambiguous questions regarding screens and screen time.

Given the social nature of these screens, it’s become harder and harder to keep kids off of them. It’s how they connect with friends after school, and it feels like these devices are finding their way into the hands of younger and younger children each year.

However, one thing that is pretty unanimously agreed upon these days is that screens, and the blue light that comes from them, can be pretty bad for your sleep no matter how old you are. Additionally, the sleep needs of children rapidly change as they grow and develop, so what is appropriate for your five-year-old might not be what works for your ten-year old.

Recently, a study from The Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics (or, JAMA Pediatrics) found that only certain types of screen use before kids go to sleep can disrupt their rest overnight. (1) Here’s everything you need to know about JAMA Pediatrics recent screen time findings.

What Kind of Screen Time Should Kids Avoid Before Bed?

According to JAMA Pediatrics’ study, certain types of nighttime screen time are more harmful for your kids than others. The study measured the sleep of 11-14-year-olds who were exposed to different types of screen time before going to bed. Researchers found that “screen time in the two hours before bed had no association with most measures of sleep health. Screen time once in bed, particularly interactive screen activities, such as gaming and multitasking, was associated with less sleep.” (1)

What this could mean is that screens before bedtime, even if your kids are watching TV in the minutes before they go to sleep, might have little to no impact on their sleep health. However, screen time that takes place when your child is in bed, particularly interactive screen time, does impact your child’s sleep. (1)

These findings seem to align with common sleep hygiene practices, where your bed is treated as a phone and screen free zone. Some people even take this a step further and leave their phone in another room while they’re sleeping.

What Should Parents Know About Screen Time Before Bed?

While this research seems to fly in the face of commonly held beliefs about bedtime and screen time, restricting screen time before bed, regardless of where this screen time takes place, is still super common advice for both kids and adults alike. Sleepopolis even recommends restricting screen use before bed for both children and adults.

However, researchers note that their “findings suggest that current sleep hygiene recommendations to restrict all screen time before bed seem neither achievable nor appropriate.” (1) As handheld screens like smart phones and tablets continue to become a bigger and bigger part of our world, it makes sense that it will become more difficult to completely eliminate screens from our routines, even before we go to bed.

Ultimately, the choice about what to do about screens before bed is up to parents and then needs of their children.

What Are Good Things That Parents Can Do For Their Children’s Sleep?

Sleepopolis’s Dr. Shelby Harris recommends a consistent bedtime and wake routine for children to have a healthy sleep schedule saying, “children sticking to a set bedtime can also give the parents time to build their own nighttime routines around their usual bedtime — a consistent nighttime routine can help the brain and body associate those activities/steps with sleep, helping parents and children to fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer.”

13 Sleep Tips for Kids From Parents Who Have Been There

Brosnan, Bradley, Haszard, Jillian, Meredith-Jones, Kim A, et al., Screen use at bedtime and sleep duration and quality among youths. JAMA Pediatrics. 2024. DOI: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2024.2914