Watching TV or listening to music in bed for up to an hour can actually improve sleep

By Stephen Beech via SWNS

Watching TV or listening to music in bed for up to an hour can actually help people get a BETTER night's sleep, according to new research.

Previous studies have suggested that watching TV or scrolling on a mobile phone before hitting the hay can disturb sleep patterns.

But new research by American scientists found that watching a show for 60 minutes or less in bed before 'lights out' can actually lead to a longer sleep - as long as there is no multi-tasking involved.

The study, published in the Journal of Sleep Research, examined how sleep might be impacted by media use - such as watching movies, TV, or YouTube videos, browsing the Internet, or listening to music - before bed.

For the research, 58 adults kept a diary that recorded information related to time spent with media before bed, location of use, and multitasking.

Electroencephalography - tests that detect electrical activity in the brain using small metal discs attached to the scalp - captured parameters such as bedtime, total sleep time, and sleep quality.

Study lead author Doctor Morgan Ellithorpe, of the University of Delaware, said: "Media use in the hour before sleep was associated with an earlier bedtime.

"If the before-bed use did not involve multitasking and was conducted in bed, it was also associated with more total sleep time.

"A long use of media associated with later bedtime and less total sleep time. Sleep quality was unaffected by media use before bed."

Dr. Ellithorpe, an Assistant Professor in Delaware's Department of Communication, added: “If you are going to use media, such as watching TV or listening to music, before bed, keep it a short, focused session and you are unlikely to experience any negative outcomes in your sleep that night."