(RxWiki News) Smartphones and tablets at bedtime may have a negative effect on the quality and quantity of sleep kids get, according to a new study.
Kids have increased access to these electronic devices, the King's College London researchers behind this study noted. And adequate sleep is essential to keeping kids healthy as they develop.
This study looked back at many past studies on this topic, looking at more than 125,000 children.
The researchers found a fairly consistent link between portable electronic device use at bedtime and children not getting enough sleep, not getting high-quality sleep and feeling very tired during the day.
These findings do not necessarily establish a cause-and-effect link, these researchers noted. Still, given their results, they called for action by parents, teachers and health care providers to discourage children's use of these electronic devices near bedtime.
This study was published in JAMA Pediatrics.
Information on funding sources and potential conflicts of interest was not available at the time of publication.
