141 Screen-based activities predict delayed sleep timing within and between adolescents

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Daytime and evening screen use have been associated with poor sleep health among adolescents, especially delayed sleep timing. However, most studies only investigate associations between adolescents rather than within the same person across multiple nights. Our multilevel modeling approach allows for assessment of connection between screen use and subsequent sleep timing. Methods We analyzed approximately five days of data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a longitudinal birth cohort (n=475 adolescents, 15.4±0.5 years old). Adolescents wore wrist actigraphy devices and completed daily surveys reporting how many hours across the day they engaged in screen-based activities (e.g., communicating with friends, playing video games) and whether they engaged in screen-based activities in the hour before bed. Screen use was separated into within- and between-person variables predicting sleep onset and midpoint that night. Multilevel models with random intercepts for each sleep outcome adjusted for school days, bedtime routines, adolescent demographics, and family socioeconomic status. Results Within-person results showed that on days when adolescents played video games more than their daily average±SE (79±3 min) sleep onset was delayed (5±2 min, p<0.01) and midpoint was delayed (4±2 min, p<0.03) for each additional hour. Between-person results showed that adolescents who played video games had delayed sleep onset (9±4 min, p<0.02) and midpoint (7±3 min, p<0.04) for each hour spent playing across the day. Adolescents who spent time using screens to communicate with friends had delayed sleep onset (11±3 min, p<0.01) and midpoint (9±3 min, p<0.01) for each hour across the day. Adolescents who were more likely to use screens to communicate with friends or play video games before bed had delayed sleep onset (29±13 min, p<0.03) and midpoint (24±12 min, p<0.05). Other screen-based activities such as watching videos were not associated with sleep timing. Conclusion Daytime and evening screen-based activities may not uniformly delay sleep. Adolescents who engage in social or interactive screen-based activities may delay sleep timing more than day-to-day variation alone. Future research should evaluate how attributes of screen-based socializing and interactivity affect sleep health. Support (if any) R01HD073352 (to LH), R01HD36916, R01HD39135, R01HD40421