TV before bedtime can lead to sleep debt

SEATTLE, June 8 (UPI) -- Television watching may determine a person's bedtime and this may contribute to not getting enough sleep and a chronic sleep debt, U.S. researchers said.

Dr. Mathias Basner and David F. Dinges of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia said the study included data from 21,475 people aged 15 or older who completed the American Time Use Survey between the years 2003-2006.

The study examined the activities participants undertook two hours before and after bedtime.

The study, presented at Sleep, the 23rd annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies in Seattle, found that television viewing was by far and away the dominant pre-sleep activity, accounting for almost 50 percent of pre-bedtime.

Sleeping less than 7-8 hours daily impairs alertness and is associated with increased obesity, morbidity and mortality, but despite this fact, up to 40 percent of Americans sleep for less than the recommended time per night, the researchers said.