New York, Dec 8 (PTI) Watching TV or using smartphonesbefore going to bed may lead to weight gain in kids, a studywarns.
The findings, published in the journal Global PediatricHealth, suggest a vicious cycle of technology use - poor sleepand rising body mass indexes (BMIs).
"We saw technology before bed being associated with lesssleep and higher BMIs," said Caitlyn Fuller, from Penn StateCollege of Medicine in the US.
"We also saw this technology use being associated withmore fatigue in the morning, which circling back, is anotherrisk factor for higher BMIs. So we are seeing a loop patternforming," Fuller said.
After surveying parents about their kids' technology andsleep habits, the researchers found that using technologybefore going to bed was associated with less sleep, poorersleep quality, more fatigue in the morning.
The children who watched TV or used their cell phonesbefore going to bed had higher body mass indexes (BMI).
The researchers asked the parents of 234 children betweenthe ages of eight and 17 years about their kids' sleep andtechnology habits.
They also asked the parents to further specify whethertheir children were using cell phones, computers, video gamesor television during their technology time.
After analysing the data, they found several adverseeffects associated with using different technologies rightbefore bed.
"We found an association between higher BMIs and anincrease in technology use, and also that children whoreported more technology use at bedtime were associated withless sleep at night," Fuller said.
"These children were also more likely to be tired in themorning, which is also a risk factor for higher BMIs," shesaid.
Children who reported watching TV or playing video gamesbefore bed got an average of 30 minutes less sleep than thosewho did not, while kids who used their phone or a computerbefore bed averaged an hour less of sleep than those who didnot. PTI SNE SARSNE.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.