No technology helps kids get healthy sleep

This article explains why having no technology in a child's bedroom is pivotal to ensure the child gets healthy and quality sleep.

Here's the scenario: A child is glued to his Xbox, or maybe his iPhone or iPad and won't go to bed. Frustrated, mom or dad gives up the fight and walks away, letting the kid play just a little longer -- even though it's a school night.

But an expert on children's sleep says parents need to buck-up.

Dr. Daniel Lewin, associate director of Pediatric Sleep Medicine at Children's Medical Center, says he too has a child who wants to be on the computer constantly.

"It's simply modeling and limit setting, which is critical," Lewin says.

It comes down to parents limiting their own exposure to electronics, especially while in front of children. This helps show the behavior they'd like their kids to mimic.

Lewin says in a culture with constant access to electronic media, there's a lot of pressure to perform.

But "those kids who are on media devices to do their homework and when that's done right before bedtime they're impacting their sleep," says Lewin.

When it comes to kids, Lewin recommends making sure the electronics are off at least an hour before bedtime. That's because the light actually shuts down the biological process that initiates sleep.

"Sleeping with a dim light in the bedroom is fine. But sleeping with electronics on in the bedroom is really not optimal," Lewin says.

For children who take ADHD medication, Lewin says it's extra important to make sure he or she is getting a good night's sleep.

"Getting enough sleep at night is critical for attention, for regulation of emotion," says Lewin. He says it's really important to be able to recognize the signs of sleep disorder and to recognize the signs of inadequate sleep.

"We have a lot of kids who are on ADHD medications. We could start by optimizing sleep before putting kids on medications. Some certainly need it," Lewin says.

There's also a relationship between sleep deprivation and mood, including suicidal thoughts. Chronic sleep deprivation can lead to high blood pressure, strokes and Type 2 diabetes.

Children around the ages of 12 and 13 should get 9.5 to 10 hours of sleep. Older children and adolescents should get about 9.5 hours of sleep.

And, Lewin adds, "The American Academy of Pediatrics has been very clear: no TVs in the bedroom and no electronics in the bedroom absolutely critical."

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Teens who use mobiles after 'lights out' may struggle with sleep, depression

Bright mobile phone screens can disrupt sleep which in turn may contribute to mood disorders such as depression.  Dr. Susarla

Teens who use mobiles after 'lights out' may struggle with sleep, depression

Published in the October issue of the Journal of Pediatric Psychology , researchers found a link between teens who used mobile phones after they went to bed and poor mental health and suicidal thoughts compared to those who did not use their phones at this time of night. The researchers controlled for other factors, including alcohol and drug usage. In the study, researchers investigated nearly 18,000 children in junior high and high schools in Japan, with subjects answering questions about their mental health, in addition to sleep and mobile phone habits. The study follows prior research that finds poor sleep is associated with mental problems in teens. For example, a study published last year in the Journal of Psychiatric Research found teens who had difficulty sleeping were at an increased risk for suicidal thoughts. Additionally, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Lighting Research Center in the US found that looking at the backlit screen of certain electronic devices can suppress melatonin, a hormone produced during sleep, and cause sleeplessness. This study was published recently in the journal Applied Ergonomics.

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Cell Phone Use Impacts Brain Activity

By Catherine Donaldson-Evans
Feb 22nd 2011 4:00PM

Talking on a cell phone for close to an hour has an impact on brain activity, according to the latest research on the subject -- but the long-term health effects remain unclear.

A preliminary study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that using the cell for 50 minutes was associated with a spike in brain glucose metabolism, which is a marker for brain activity.

The increased glucose metabolism happened in the area of the brain closest to the phone antenna, said scientists from the National Institutes of Health. What the results mean from a health standpoint isn't yet known.

Read the rest of the article here.