The restrictions adopted to counter the Covid-19 pandemic have drastically increased theexposure to electronic devices in minors, involving a sharp increase in sleep disturbances. This is what a study conducted on has found more than 1,000 children and adolescents and coordinated by the Bambino Gesù Pediatric Hospital together with the University of La Sapienza and that of Tor Vergata. The results were published in the scientific journal Sleep Medicine.
The study found that compared to the pre-pandemic period, the increase in time spent in front of a screen involved a total of 68.7% of children and teenagers. Specifically the time of exposure more than tripled for school purposes (from just under an hour a day to three and a half hours) and involved 72% of children and teenagers. While for recreational use, use nearly doubled (from one hour and three-quarters to three hours) and involved 49.7% of the subjects.
Today 30% of children spend more than two hours in front of screens
Considering only the evening hours (after 6 pm), the increase in exposure time to the devices was observed in 30% of the sample (325 children). It has gone from just 13.7% of children and young people who spent more than two hours in front of screens before Covid to 29.1% (more than double). A particularly significant datum given that i factors most associated with risk of onset of sleep disorder are precisely those related to time spent in front of a screen in the evening hours.
Sleep disturbances: a 50% growth
The aim of the study was to verify the increase in the use of electronic devices during the pandemic by studying their effects on children’s sleep. To assess the presence or absence of sleep disturbances, lo was used Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children, a special questionnaire consisting of 26 questions that allow you to evaluate sleep habits in children and adolescents. Questions include sleep duration, difficulty falling asleep and waking up, number of times you wake up during the night, restlessness during sleep, etc.
The study conducted by the doctors of the Developmental Neurology and by the researchers of Neurological and Neurosurgical diseases of the Child Jesus together with colleagues from the University of Sapienza and those of Tor Vergata, demonstrated a more than 50% increase in sleep disturbances compared to the pre-pandemic period. In detail, it went from 240 children and adolescents who already showed sleep disturbances before the start of the pandemic, to 367 during the pandemic: 33.9% of the entire sample, practically one in three minors.
“The data from the study demonstrated a correlation between the increase in the use of electronic devices during Covid and the increase in sleep disturbances – explains Dr. Romina Moavero of the developmental neurology of the Child Jesus – But there is another very important element. And that is that the lifestyle of children and teenagers has changed profoundly. By now electronic devices are part of their life, both school and social, and this persists even now that we are very far from the pandemic closures. All this only underlines the importance of sleep hygiene recommendations which must always be considered the first line of treatment to promote appropriate behaviors to promote good sleep in childhood and adolescence. Especially because sleep in this age group is crucial for improving learning, cognitive, scholastic and even social skills».
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