A recent study has found that excessive recreational screen use among children and adolescents is associated with early markers of heart and metabolic disease—raising alarms over long-term health implications.
What the Study Found
Researchers analyzed data from over 1,000 young people in Denmark, ranging from age 10 to 18. They measured screen time—time spent watching TV, gaming, or using smartphones and tablets for leisure—and assessed cardiometabolic risk factors, including blood pressure, cholesterol levels, blood sugar, waist circumference, and insulin resistance.
The results showed that each additional hour of daily screen time was linked to higher overall cardiometabolic risk—around 0.08 standard deviations in 10-year-olds and 0.13 standard deviations in 18-year-olds. In practice, this could translate into meaningful health impacts when screen hours accumulate to three, five, or six hours daily.
Sleep: A Critical Factor
Sleep quality and timing emerged as key modifiers. Children and adolescents who slept less or went to bed later showed stronger associations between screen time and health risk. In fact, about 12% of the link between screen use and metabolic risk was mediated by shorter sleep duration, suggesting that screen time may pose a health threat partly by reducing restorative sleep.
Why It Matters
- The study underscores that heart and metabolic risk factors can begin accumulating in childhood and adolescence, not just in adulthood.
- With average screen use for teens reaching six hours a day, the cumulative effect across populations
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