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Dozens of CA events this weekend honor Latino Conservation Week; Kamala Harris joins Oprah Winfrey in emotional campaign event; Report finds poor working conditions in Texas clean energy industry; AI puts on a lab coat, heads to technical schools.

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Rising threats of political violence, a Federal Reserve rate cut, crypto industry campaign contributions and reproductive rights are shaping today's political landscape.

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A USDA report shows a widening gap in rural versus urban health, a North Carolina county remains divided over a LGBTQ library display, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz' policies are spotlighted after his elevation to the Democratic presidential ticket.

Research: Kids Vulnerable to Sleep Problems from Screens

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Wednesday, November 15, 2017   

LINCOLN, Neb. – If your children are falling asleep watching TV or with a cell phone tucked under the covers, they're probably going to bed later and getting much less sleep than children without access to electronic devices.

Monique LeBourgeois, lead author of a new study published in the journal Pediatrics, says children are uniquely vulnerable to sleep disruption from electronic screens.

She explains because the eyes of young children are not fully developed, the light has a bigger effect on their internal body clock.

"And many parents believe that media – like watching a video or playing a game – actually calms their children before bedtime, but in fact it may be the exact opposite and we may be creating the perfect storm to disruption of the both the circadian clock and sleep," she points out.

Studies have found that screen time is associated with delayed bedtimes, fewer hours of sleep and poorer sleep quality.

A recent report from the nonprofit organization Common Sense Media showed mobile media device use has tripled among young children aged 5 to 16 in the past six years.

LeBourgeois says light is the brain's primary timekeeper, and when it comes to children and adolescents, self-illuminated devices such as smartphones, tablets and televisions bathe children’s eyes in blue light that can keep sleep at bay.

"So this immature eye allows more light to actually hit the retina that signal the internal biological clock," she explains.

LeBourgeois encourages parents to turn off their children’s devices with screens before bed and charge them somewhere outside bedrooms.

She also says parents should set an example by keeping TVs, computers, tablets and cellphones out of their own bedrooms.









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