Trends in television and computer/videogame use and total screen time in high school students from Caruaru city, Pernambuco, Brazil: A repeated panel study between 2007 and 2012

Abstract

-Aim: to analyze the pattern and trends of use of screen-based devices and associated factors from two surveys conducted on public high school students in Caruaru-PE. Methods: two representative school-based crosssectional surveys conducted in 2007 (n=600) and 2012 (n=715) on high school students (15-20 years old). The time of exposure to television (TV) and computer/videogames PC/VG was obtained through a validated questionnaire, and ≥3hours/day was considered as being excessive exposure. The independent variables were socioeconomic status, school related, and physical activity. Crude and adjusted binary logistic regression were employed to examine the factors associated with screen time. The statistical significance was set at p<0.05. Results: There was a significant reduction in TV time on weekdays and total weekly, but no change in the prevalence of excessive exposure. The proportion of exposure to PC/VG of ≥3 hours/day increased 182.5% on weekdays and 69.5% on weekends (p <0.05). In 2007, being physically active was the only protection factor for excessive exposure to total screen time. In 2012, girls presented less chance of excessive exposure to all screen-based devices and total screen time. Other protective factors were studying at night and being physically active (PC/VG time), while residing in an urban area 41)] and having higher family income [OR 1.55(1.04-2.30)] were risk factors. Conclusion: Significant and important changes in the time trends and pattern of use PC/VG were observed during the interval of 5 years. This rapid increase could be associated with increased family income and improved access to these devices, driven by technological developments.

Screen time and childhood overweight/obesity: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

“…During the past few years, researches repeatedly showed that television time presented a decreasing trend, data from the Youth Risk Behaviour Surveillance and showed that exposure to TV of least 2 hr/day reduced from 1999 to 2007 (Lowry, Lee, Fulton, & Kann, ). At the same time, a recent study reported that children are main users of other electronic devices such as computer, smart phone, and video (Aros, Germano‐Soares, Silva, Silva, & Tassitano, ), and Silva et al () demonstrated that time spent on computer and video game increased from 2001 to 2011. The different types of screen may have different effects on childhood overweight/obesity.…”

Association between screen time exposure, anxiety, and sleep quality in adolescents

“…This non-association can also be related to the viewing distance from the TV, which is usually greater than other devices. The interaction pattern of allied devices including the use of social networking seems to impact the sleep quality and anxiety in adolescents (Aros, Germano-Soares, Silva, Silva, & Tassitano, 2017;Silva et al, 2014). For example, in a study conducted by Espinoza and Juvone (2011) with 268 young adolescents, it was found that 37% reported having lost sleep due to the use of social networking sites.…”

Systematic review of childhood and adolescence sedentary behavior: analysis of the Report Card Brazil 2018

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