There is a growing concern among parents of tweens and teens: their children are using phones at night, leading to struggles with waking up, declining grades, and moodiness. Kerri Anderson, a Connecticut child and family therapist, has observed this trend over 15 years. Now, a new study from the University of California at San Francisco quantifies the extent of the problem.
Study Details
Published in JAMA Pediatrics, the study followed 657 adolescents with an average age of 15. Researchers used an app to passively track screen use, finding that teens averaged over 50 minutes of smartphone use between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. on school nights. More than half used their phones between midnight and 4 a.m., primarily on social media apps like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, as well as streaming and gaming apps.
Impact on Sleep and Health
Lead author Dr. Jason Nagata noted that middle-of-the-night phone use can disrupt critical sleep windows. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends 8 to 10 hours of sleep for teens. Nagata emphasized that social media is emotionally activating, making it harder for teens to wind down, and is linked to higher risks of depression, anxiety, and attention problems.
Recommendations
The ideal solution is to eliminate screens from the bedroom entirely. However, two-thirds of teens in the study reported sleeping with their phones. Nagata suggests turning off phones completely, as silent or vibrate settings can still cause disruptions. Parents are encouraged to be role models and create a family media plan.
Therapist Kerri Anderson stresses open dialogue between parents and teens to achieve buy-in. She advises framing the goal as support rather than punishment, helping teens learn to navigate screen use independently as they approach adulthood.
