New research questions current sleep guidelines for teens

Sleep guidelines suggest no screens, no exercise, and no food in the hour before bed, but do they work and how many young people follow them?

A University of Otago – Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka study explored if youth adhere to the current pre-bed recommendations and how that impacts their sleep.

Lead author Chao Gu, PhD candidate in the Department of Medicine, says there were two key questions they wanted to answer.

“Are the recommendations backed up by good evidence? And are the recommendations practical in reality?

“Youth and families are often told not to use screens, not to exercise, and not to eat in the hour before bed to ensure a good night’s sleep. However, the evidence does not necessarily show that limiting these pre-bed behaviours helps with sleep. In reality, we also do not know how many youths are actually following these recommendations,” she says.

The study, published in Pediatrics Open Science, used body cameras and detailed food records to look at what young people did in the hour before bedtime in their typical daily life, and how these sleep hygiene behaviours influenced their sleep that night.

Ninety-nine per cent of participants used screens and 63 per cent ate before bed. Only 22 per cent of them exercised before bed.

“Not many teenagers followed current sleep guidelines, but those who did experienced little difference in their sleep.

It is very common for youth to use screens, quite common for them to have some food, but less common for them to be very physically active in the hour before bed.”

Chao Gu, PhD Candidate, Department of Medicine, University of Otago

Ms Gu believes the results highlight the need for further research on the topic, and a possible revisit of the current recommendations.

“Sleep is incredibly important for teenagers to enable them to develop and function at their best, but so few studies have looked at pre-bed behaviour and how it can impact rest using objective measures such as cameras.”

The researchers are currently undertaking a study of 10–15-year-olds which they hope will provide robust and directional evidence for such revisions and help improve bedtime guidance for families.