Prolonged screen time is associated with increased prevalence of sleep disorders in children.

Cross-sectionalEuropean journal of pediatrics· Aug 2026

Prolonged screen time is associated with increased prevalence of sleep disorders in children.

Bruna Luiza Maximo Ramos, Rafaella Bom Dos Santos Hochuli, José Vitor Nogara Borges de Menezes, Juliana Feltrin-Souza

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Child Development & BehaviourCross-sectionalClinical practiceQ1IF 3.2

Prolonged screen time linked to higher sleep disturbance scores in preschoolers

Prolonged screen time is associated with increased prevalence of sleep disorders in children.

Bruna Luiza Maximo Ramos … Juliana Feltrin-Souza

European journal of pediatrics · Aug 2026 · Q1 in Pediatrics

Purpose

This study aimed to investigate whether sleep disorders are associated with electronic screen use before bedtime and total daily usage time in preschool children.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted with 604 preschool children aged 4-5 years.

n = 604 preschool children

Results

more screen time raised sleep disturbance risk by 16%

PR 1.16 (95% CI 1.05 to 1.28)

null 0

1.05

1.28

CI excludes the null - significant

More results

Most children used electronic media to fall asleep (88.9%), and more than half used it for over one hour per day (66.9%), while 17.3% used it for more than 4 hours daily.

More results

Use of media at bedtime was associated with disorders of initiating and maintaining sleep (p = 0.010; adjusted PR = 1.17; 95% CI = 1.04 - 1.33) and hyperhidrosis (p = 0.046; adjusted PR = 1.12; 95% CI = 1.00 - 1.27).

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Conclusion · 1 of 3

Prolonged screen time and screen use before bedtime are associated with sleep disorders in preschool children.

Conclusion · 2 of 3

WHAT IS KNOWN: • Excessive and problematic screen use has been widely reported among children and adolescents,raising concerns about its potential impact on sleep health and children development.

Conclusion · 3 of 3

WHAT IS NEW: • Higher screen exposure was independently associated with sleep disturbances in preschool children, emphasizing early childhood as a critical window for interventions aimed at reducing screen-related sleep problems.

Prolonged screen time is associated with increased prevalence of sleep disorders in children.

Prolonged screen time is associated with increased prevalence of sleep disorders in children.

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