Alsubhi Mohammed I, Ali Jaafar M, Sarhan Mohamed J, Alkamel Sayed Hashem A, Abdulrasool Husain A, Alalawi Husain G, Alhamad Hibah A, Yusuf Mohammed H
Family Medicine, King Abdulaziz Medical City, Jeddah, SAU.
General Practice, NBB Dair Health Center, Dair, BHR.
Cureus. 2025 May 16;17(5):e84218. doi: 10.7759/cureus.84218. eCollection 2025 May.
Excessive screen time has been increasingly associated with sleep disturbances in children, but data from the Gulf region are limited. This study examined the relationship between daily screen time and sleep quality among school-aged children in Saudi Arabia.
We conducted a cross-sectional survey of parents of children aged six to 12 years at primary health care centers in Saudi Arabia. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on daily screen time, sleep disturbances (difficulty falling asleep and night awakenings), and chronic medical conditions. Screen time was categorized as <1 hour, 1-2 hours, 3-4 hours, or >4 hours per day. Associations were assessed using chi-square tests and logistic regression, adjusting for age, gender, and medical conditions.
A total of 500 children were included (mean age: 7.5 years; 260 boys {52.0%}). Difficulty falling asleep was reported in four of 42 children (9.5%) with <1 hour of screen time, compared to 56 of 84 children (66.7%) with >4 hours. Compared with children with <1 hour of screen time, adjusted odds ratios for difficulty falling asleep were 1.43 (95% CI: 1.01-2.03) for 1-2 hours, 1.89 (95% CI: 1.32-2.71) for 3-4 hours, and 3.21 (95% CI: 2.18-4.77) for >4 hours. Sleep disturbances were also more common in children with chronic medical conditions (57 of 139 {41.0%}) than in those without (88 of 361 {24.4%}; OR: 1.50; 95% CI: 1.03-2.19). Age and gender were not significantly associated with sleep outcomes.
Screen time is independently and dose-dependently associated with parent-reported sleep disturbances in children. Reducing screen exposure, particularly in the evening, may help improve sleep quality in this population.
儿童睡眠时间过长与睡眠障碍的关联日益增加，但来自海湾地区的数据有限。本研究调查了沙特阿拉伯学龄儿童每日屏幕使用时间与睡眠质量之间的关系。
我们在沙特阿拉伯的初级卫生保健中心对6至12岁儿童的家长进行了一项横断面调查。使用结构化问卷收集每日屏幕使用时间、睡眠障碍（入睡困难和夜间觉醒）以及慢性疾病的数据。屏幕使用时间分为每天<1小时、1 - 2小时、3 - 4小时或>4小时。使用卡方检验和逻辑回归评估关联，并对年龄、性别和疾病状况进行调整。
共纳入500名儿童（平均年龄：7.5岁；260名男孩{52.0%}）。报告显示，屏幕使用时间<1小时的42名儿童中有4名（9.5%）存在入睡困难，而屏幕使用时间>4小时的84名儿童中有56名（66.7%）存在入睡困难。与屏幕使用时间<1小时的儿童相比，屏幕使用时间为1 - 2小时的儿童入睡困难的调整比值比为1.43（95%可信区间：1.01 - 2.03），3 - 4小时的为1.89（95%可信区间：1.32 - 2.71），>4小时的为3.21（95%可信区间：2.18 - 4.77）。慢性疾病儿童的睡眠障碍（139名中的57名{41.0%}）也比无慢性疾病儿童（361名中的88名{24.4%}）更常见；比值比：1.50；95%可信区间：1.03 - 2.19。年龄和性别与睡眠结果无显著关联。
屏幕使用时间与家长报告的儿童睡眠障碍独立且呈剂量依赖性相关。减少屏幕暴露，尤其是在晚上，可能有助于改善该人群的睡眠质量。
