Evening Screen Time Negatively Affects Kids' Sleep

Many young children have a problem going to sleep when it is their bed time. A recent study in the journal Pediatrics found that children between the ages of 3 and 5 had trouble sleeping if they had screen time after 7 p.m. Screen time includes television, video games or the computer. The amount of violent content in the program or game appears to be a contributing factor.

According to the study, about 20 percent of the 112 children involved had sleep problems almost every day of the week. Their issues included difficulty falling asleep, waking up during the night, nightmares and being sleepy during the day. The children who watched violent television at night had the most sleep problems.

A hundred children averaged a half hour of nighttime television, and 28 percent of the group had difficulty sleeping. When it came to violent television, 60 of the children averaged about an hour daily. About 37 percent had trouble sleeping. Television is often a stimulant to small children. Evening viewing may lead to increased alertness, and prevent them from winding down for bedtime. The findings demonstrate the importance that parents monitor the amount of television young children watch so they meet their sleep needs.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Dr. Marc Weissbluth a sleep disorders specialist at Chicago's Children's Memorial Hospital, said children get ready for sleep with nighttime rituals that communicate that it is time for rest. Many families mistakenly believe that watching television helps their children go sleep, so they put televisions in their children’s room. Weissbluth suggests bedtime stories or cuddling with parents as healthier alternatives to television.

The findings are consistent with another study on bedtime routines published in the May 2009 issue of SLEEP. The study found that a healthy bedtime routine improves the sleep of infants and toddlers.

Image by Sean Dreilinger

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Father Manages Sleep Apnea on National TV in “Losing It with Jillian” Finale

The final episode of NBC’s “Losing It with Jillian” serves as a warning about the lifestyle factors that can lead to sleep apnea. After years of refusing treatment for severe sleep apnea a family’s 328 pound patriarch decided to clean up his act fearing he could “drop dead at any second.”

Enter tough love celebrity trainer Jillian Michaels. The famous taskmaster from “The Biggest Loser” whips a family into shape each episode by teaching them the value of fitness and nutrition.

For the Alvarez family the path to weight loss began with a difficult visit to the doctor’s office. The father David Alvarez Sr. learned he was risking his life every time he went to sleep without a CPAP machine. An overnight sleep study showed his sleep apnea was especially severe. Breathing pauses lasted up to 32 seconds, and his apnea index was 64.

He begrudgingly resumed CPAP therapy, but years of sleep apnea had taken a toll on his health. Doctors advised against doing activities that would moderately raise his heart rate, making a weight loss plan more difficult.

His son David Jr. was unhealthy and on track to develop diabetes and sleep apnea. In a heartbreaking or depending how you view it, manipulative scene the two had a father son chat about CPAP and obstructive sleep apnea. David Jr. tried wearing the CPAP mask, while his father explained why it could be his future. David Sr. said he was ashamed that he had to “do this or I’m dead.”

There is no shame in a therapy that can save your life. Obesity and unhealthy lifestyle choices promote obstructive sleep apnea, but some people develop the sleep disorder anyways.

The lesson that should be taken to heart is that you have some control and you can reduce your chances of getting sleep apnea. There are treatments but there is no surefire magic bullet for people who already have sleep apnea. Weight loss can help but won’t eliminate symptoms for severe cases. An approach using diet and exercise should be paired with CPAP, oral appliance therapy or surgery for sleep apnea.

The full episode is available streaming on Hulu until August 19th.

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Losing sleep over the “Lost” finale

Let's face it, I'm going to stay up way too late Sunday night. After the “Lost” series finale ends at 11:30est/10:30cst, I’ll call my closest “Lostie” friends. Then I’ll hit the internet. After that I’m I’ll have to watch “Jimmy Kimmel Live” to see all of the alternate endings. I know I won’t be able to sleep because I’ll still be thinking about “Lost.”

If I’m lucky I’ll get to sleep by 1 a.m. Monday is going to be a long day.

Countless Americans will be no different. The Super Bowl aside, the enigmatic sci-fi/ drama is expected to draw the highest ratings of any program in years.
ABC knows this. The network is turning what was originally a 2 hour program into a 6-hour-long marathon spanning late into the night.

Without a doubt “Lost” will be one of those water cooler moments everyone’s talking about at workplaces everywhere the following morning. Only the employees won’t be standing near the water cooler, they’ll be gathered around the coffee pot. Remember programming wraps up at 1 a.m est.

I realize this post is a bit of a stretch, but Sunday's finale is a big deal. Over the course of its six season “Lost” has pretty much ignored the subject of sleep altogether.

With the help of Lostpedia, a few friends and my own memory as a casual fan here’s the few instances I could come up with:

-In the pilot the sounds of the smoke monster moving through the jungle kept everyone awake the first night on the island.
-A sleep deprived Jack saw his father’s ghost in the first season.
-Claire refused to sleep because she was afraid someone would take “the baby”
-Desmond lived and slept in the hatch for three years and 44 days with the help of artificial sunlight.

Does the Locke Monster/Smokey dream?

And there’s that worst-case scenario that’s oft-mentioned in pre-finale speculation. Was it all a dream? Wrapping up years of speculation with a lazy ending like this will cause a fan revolt.

How do you think Lost will end?

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Latest line of Sony HDTVs watch you sleep

An advanced feature Sony is rolling out with its latest line of HDTV’s lets the television watch you, the viewer.

This role reversal is made possible by facial recognition technology comparable to what’s found in Sony’s high-end cameras.

Why would they include this you ask – the answer is to save energy. When users fall asleep while watching television, it automatically turns of the screen’s backlight.

The Guardian UK reports the facial recognition technology is part of a suite of energy saving features created to help Sony achieve its goal of having a “zero environmental footprint” by 2050.

The televisions also include a heat and motion sensor so the television turns off if no one is in the room. There’s also an ambient light sensor so the picture dims depending on the room’s brightness.

All of these features were introduced last year in Sony’s Bravia WE5 model and will be included in many new TV models.

Is a television that can recognize your face helpful or creepy? Depends on how you view it. This blogger speculates Sony could expand the use of this technology in future products, specifically its video games. Playstation 4 anyone?

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