Conducted at the Sleep Disorders Center at JFK Medical Center in Edison, N.J., the reaserchers found that kids and teens who use media devices like computer, cellphone, and other electronic devices until late night had a greater chance of sleep disorders that cause many problem.

"These activities are not sleep-promoting, like reading a novel or listening to music. They stimulate the brain and depress normal sleep cycles," said study author Dr. Peter G. Polos.

After surveyed on 40 boys and girls with an average age of 14 about their activities after they had gone into their bedroom for the night and were supposed to be sleeping, the researchers found correlations between late-night electronic media use and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, mood swings, anxiety, depression and poor cognitive functioning (thinking skills) during the day.

About half of the parents of study participants didn't know about this late night media use, said Polos. The others knew, but had a fatalistic attitude.

"They [parents] thought, 'This is the world we live in, what can you do?'" said Polos. But parents need to monitor electronic media use, he said, because "at the end of the day, the parent is still the parent, the child is still the child."

Another reason parents need to monitor media use is to know what is going on in their children's lives, said Expert Richard Gallagher.

"Parents need to take the perspective of what their own lives were like growing up," said Gallagher, director of the Parenting Institute at the Child Study Center at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City.

"Parents knew if someone came to the door to see their daughter or son," said Gallagher, an associate professor of adolescent psychiatry at New York University, adding that "children should have some privacy, but parents need to make it more comparable to when they were growing up."


HealthDay: Study Finds Teens' Late Night Media Use Comes at a Price

1. Eat for energy. “If I eat too much before a show, I just want to sit down. Too little, and I’m starving. So I eat something small, like Quorn, a tasty meat-free protein, and green beans.”

2. Keep a food diary. Carrie has been tracking her intake for three years! She counts her calories on a regular basis, to see how it all adds up. “Once you realize, it’s like, ‘No wonder I’ve plateaued! No wonder I’ve been gaining weight!’” she says. “Little things really do add up.”

3. Enjoy your favorite foods, healthfully. In 2007 Carrie told SELF “My food indulgences are pizza, and I love… cheese. I have a big problem controlling myself with the cheese.” Two years later, it looks like she found a way to have her pizza and eat it too! Here’s her recipe favorite formula for a healthy, 250-calorie personal pizza: 1 Flatout wrap with 1/4 cup sauce, 1/2 cup fat-free or 2% cheese and loaded up with veggies.

4. Cut the sugar. “My sugar intake is way down, and I have a lot fewer breakouts. Now when I drink tea, it’s unsweetened. Or I’ll have water,” the start told SELF. “Also, I’m off soda. For so long, I’d have a Diet Coke with breakfast!”

Sure, you can probably tone up pretty quickly taking a Louisville slugger to headlights and slashing tires but it turns out that is not the way country idol Carrie Underwood maintains her rockin’ bod. Here are some of the slim and sexy superstar’s favorite fitness secrets:

1.) Make exercise accessible. “I have Exercise TV on cable. Jillian Michaels’s videos will kick your butt. She’s my trainer, and she doesn’t even know it!”

2.) Work toward an event. “Everybody has things they want to look nice for: anniversary, birthday, reunion. I’ll think to myself, Oh, that award show is coming up. Or, I have a photo shoot in four days! It’s nice to set goals.”

3.) Revel in success. “I love it when I feel good about myself. I’ll look at a photo and think, My arms look great!–and then I go work out my arms. Once you’re enjoying things about your body, you realize how much you want to keep them that way or make them better.”

4.) Favorite ab improver: “When I gain weight, it’s in the spare-tire area. I’ve told trainers abs are a physical impossibility for me. And every single time, they’re like, ‘Well, we’ll get you abs!’ So do I have them? No! But they’re as flat as they’re probably going to get. Push-ups work out everything. If you do them right, you’ll feel it in your abs. I do four sets of 10 to 20.”


Source: Carrie Underwood’s Diet Secrets and Workout Tips