Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Innovative Journal of Pediatrics, cilt.36, sa.2, 2026 (Scopus)
Background: The use of media tools among children and the time spent in front of media tools are increasing. In addition to the positive effects of digital media tools, negative effects such as sleep disorders, obesity, learning and attention deficits worry both families and physicians. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the correlation between media usage and sleep patterns among healthy children aged 6 to 11 years. Methods: This survey was conducted as an observational cross-sectional study at the outpatient clinics of the Division of Social Pediatrics and General Pediatrics of Gazi University Faculty of Medicine. This study includes a total of 287 children aged 6 - 11 years who were admitted to the hospital during the study period between March and May 2023. Two validated scales were used: the 9-item Problematic Media Use Measure-Short Form and the 26-item Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children. Results: The mean age of the 287 children was 8.5 ± 1.5 years. Nearly half of them (48%) began using digital media before 24 months of age. Forty-two percent had screen exposure within 30 minutes of bedtime. While the mean score of the Problematic Media Use Measure-Short Form was 2.40 ± 0.86, the mean score of the Sleep Disturbance Scale for children was found to be 45.2 ± 10.3. Higher scores indicate a greater level of problematic media use in the child. Sleep disturbance was reported in 15% of the participants. Higher problematic media use scores correlated with greater sleep disturbance. Those who began media use before 24 months demonstrated higher sleep disturbance scores. Scores were also high with gaming, particularly violent war games. Media use for war games increased the problematic media use score by 4.1 times, screen exposure within one hour before bedtime increased the score by 3.1 times, and spending more than 2 hours in front of the computer increased the score by 4.8 times. Moreover, spending 2 hours or more in front of a cell phone increased the sleep disturbance score by 2.8 times. Conclusions: This study revealed an association between increased problematic media use and higher rates of sleep disturbances in children aged 6 - 11 years. Since the cross-sectional study design did not allow us to draw definitive conclusions, more longitudinal studies are needed to investigate the risks associated with screen time behaviors.