Study: Violent videos may be causing sleep problems for young children and their parents

SEATTLE - A new study claims violent videos may be causing nightmares for not only children but also the parents of pre-school aged children.

Dr. Jyoti Krishna did not take part in the study but treats pediatric sleep disorders at the Cleveland Clinic.

"Just by changing the kinds of things they're watching or interacting with from violent, take it away and make it educational, things like Curious George, Dora the Explorer, things that are multi-ethnic, multi-racial, educational, makes children sleep better at night," said Dr. Jyoti Krishna

Researchers with the Seattle Children's Research Institute studied 565 families with children between the ages of 3 and 5. They found children who watched age-appropriate movies and TV shows had significantly lower odds of sleep problems. It also helped to have their parents watching alongside their children. The kids fell asleep faster, had less nightmares, and had less difficulty waking in the morning.

Researchers think choosing healthy media content for children may help treat existing sleep problems and be a useful preventative measure.

"I would encourage parents to mindful of the ratings and the content of the media they purchase for the children and not give in to every little thing that comes out," said Dr. Jyoti Krishna.

Complete findings for this study are in the Journal Pediatrics.