Effect of Screen Time and Sugar Consumption Reduction on Sleep Bruxism in Children: A Randomised Clinical Trial

Sleep bruxism (SB) is associated with alterations in dopamine and serotonin, which are related to increased consumption of added sugar and overuse of screens. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of the interventions 'Food, Fun and Family' (FFF) and Counselling and Education (CE) on the frequency of SB in children.

A randomised clinical trial was conducted. Forty-eight participants aged between 4 and 8 years, attending the paediatric clinics of Universidad CES (Colombia) and Hospital Elina de la Serna (Argentina) participated in the study. Subjects were randomised into the FFF (experimental) and CE (regular intervention) groups. The frequency of SB was reported with the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ), the consumption of added sugar from items with the HBSC-FFQ and the time of use of screens through a diary in baseline (before starting the intervention), at Week 6 and Week 12. Data were analysed with Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Dunn's post hoc, Mann-Whitney test, a linear mixed model and logistic ordinal regression analyses.

The FFF group had a more significant reduction in consumption of added sugar and screen time compared to the CE group (p < 0.05), especially from Week 6 to baseline. Regression analysis showed that reducing TV watching and consumption of added sugar were associated with a decrease in SB frequency, especially in the FFF group (OR < 1, p < 0.05), and the results were consistent across different study environments.

The FFF intervention was more effective in reducing the screen time and sugar consumption and thus decreased the frequency of SB, when compared with the CE intervention.

ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT05310162.