In this article Cerebra Sleep Practitioner Carwyn Tywyn looks at the latest research on the gap between screen time (including gaming) and sleep time and how we sometimes need to work flexibly where there may be a really fine balance between the pros and cons of screens, and how we should adapt to individual needs.
Key Points
- Screen time and gaming are major social issues. “Gaming Disorder” is now an internationally recognised medical condition.
- Academic research in 2025 continues to establish that screen time impacts on sleep.
- However, it is claimed that screen time can have benefits for neurodivergent children. In individual situations, screen time could be said to aid some children’s sleep routines.
- We continue to advise a minimum 1 hour gap between screen time and bedtime. However, in situations where this is difficult to achieve, our Sleep Advice Service can work sympathetically and safely with families towards this aim.
Screen time and gaming in 2025: setting the scene
It only takes a passing glance at current research, policy output and information services to recognise that screen time and gaming have become serious social issues across the western world. Indeed, the World Health Organisation now classifies “Gaming Disorder” as a defined health condition in the 11th Revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). In 2019, this situation was recognised in the UK by the establishment of The National Centre for Gaming Disorders under the auspices of NHS.
YoungMinds is an independent charity that supports the mental health of young people in the UK. It is a sobering thought that the YoungMinds ‘Parents A-Z Mental Health Guide’ gives ‘Gaming’ an equal prominence as other major, traumatic social issues such as ‘Drugs and Alcohol’, ‘Gender and Identity’, ‘Divorce and Separation’ and ‘Suicidal Thoughts’.
In 2024, the cross-party Education Committee of the UK Parliament published a damning report on the impacts of screentime on young people, including the ‘lifelong harm’ caused to young people not only by direct threats such as cyberbullying, pornography, violence, but also by less explicit threats such has habitual use and the impact on sleep: “Screen time can also be damaging to a child’s sleep pattern as unregulated screen usage may occur when a child should be sleeping”.
There has been some significant academic research in this area of work this year. For example, Khalid et al. (2025) observe that “there is [a] positive correlation and video gaming has great impact on sleep”, while a major study of over 45,000 students in Norway published in March 2025, found that “a one-hour increase of screen time after going to bed was associated with 59% higher odds of having symptoms of insomnia and a reduction in sleep duration of 24 minutes”.
“But it’s what they NEED right now”: benefits of screen time for neurodivergent children?
Disabled Living is a disability support organisation in the UK. In 2021, the organisation published an information article ‘Screen time and Autism: When are screens necessary?’ Within the article, a cartoon depicts two members of the public judging a parent for giving an electronic device to their child: “Such lazy parenting. Why have kids if you don’t pay them any attention?” The obviously shamed parent is reduced to a thought bubble: “But it’s what they NEED right now”.
Meanwhile, Autism Parenting Magazine lists the following among the ‘pros’ or positive aspects of screentime for children: “a calming effect”; “visual and auditory stimuli”; “a controlled setting for social interactions”; “visual learning tools” and “bridges educational gaps”.
Anecdotally, and unfortunately, it appears that research and news output on the potential benefits of screen time for neurodivergent people is at a less advanced stage, than the findings on the multiple problems of screen time. However, Leicestershire NHS Partnership list a number of positive effects of technology for Autistic people in relation to social engagement and education. Indeed, the Parliamentary Committee report mentioned above, noted the possibility that screen time “can have some benefits for children, such as bettering their educational outcomes through helpful educational content online”.
As a Sleep Service, we are aware from practical experience that electronic devices play an important, positive role in the lives of young people whether that is for reasons of play, education, sensory input or emotional regulation – or a combination of these factors.
We are also trained as sleep practitioners to recognise that removing one positive association (e.g. electronic device, bottle of milk, parent, toy, blanket, dummy etc.), without first establishing an alternative association, raises the risk of increased of stress, dysregulation, conflict and even physical violence against property or parents. Stress can contribute to fluctuations in the hormone, Cortisol, which can have complex impacts on sleep pattern.
Screen time and sleep advice
The generally accepted advice across a wide range of organsiations, including Cerebra, is that there should be a one hour gap between screen time and sleep time, and there is firm scientific reasoning for this advice: “It is… important to try and limit use of devices which emit bright light (such as televisions, computers and tablets) close to bedtime. This is because just 10 minutes of light exposure interferes with the brain’s production of the ‘sleepy’ hormone, melatonin”. The Sleep Council’s ‘Good Night Guide for Children’, recommends turning off all screens in the hour before bedtime.
However, as a disability organisation we would acknowledge that this advice needs to be delivered in a non-judgmental manner, according to the ability of a child and their family to make adaptions and compromises in reaching the ultimate goal of a 1-hour break before sleep time. This is particularly relevant in situations where a child may be demonstrating demand avoidance behaviours, where there may be an ongoing bargain between negotiable and non-negotiable aspect of a sleep routine.
If the use of a tablet is an essential, non-negotiable part of your child’s bedtime routine before bed or upon waking during the night, you could install an application to filter out blue light (the particular ‘wave’ of light which interferes most with melatonin). These can be downloaded from the app store on iOS or on Android devices.
Conclusion
In conclusion, we maintain our firm general advice to families, that there should be at least a 1-hour beak between screen time and sleep time. In addition, it could be said that there is an urgent need for all organisations involved in health care, to give greater prominence to the real problems of screen time and gaming.
However, specific advice to individual families of neurodivergent children should be tailored in a way that is safe, empathetic and realistic to the abilities and circumstances of each individual family.
