NHS advises removing TVs from bedrooms to improve sleep and curb daytime tiredness
Health chiefs say watching television in bed can disrupt sleep routines and recommend a 30-minute screen-free wind-down before bedtime
The National Health Service is urging people to remove televisions from bedrooms as a simple step to tackle insomnia and excessive daytime tiredness.
NHS guidance says watching TV in bed can "stimulate your body and reduce fatigue" and "affect sleep quality as your body gets out of the habit of being trained to go to bed to sleep," adding: "Therefore, remove [the] TV from [the] bedroom." The advice is part of broader recommendations that adults aim for seven to nine hours of good-quality sleep each night and adopt a sleep-friendly bedroom environment: a dark room, a slightly cool temperature, a supportive mattress and pillows.
Dr. Hana Patel, representing mattress brand Time4Sleep, echoed the NHS guidance and advised against keeping a television in the bedroom. "If you do like to watch TV before drifting off to sleep, I would recommend turning it off at least half an hour before you go to bed as this will help the mind to wind down before bedtime," she said. She added that if people rely on the television to fall asleep, they should choose programming that is both visually and audibly relaxing, such as nature documentaries with water or ocean sounds.
Surveys suggest bedrooms remain a common place to watch television. A 2024 UK Sleep Survey by Dreams found 52% of respondents had a TV in their bedroom, and a 2022 poll by Bensons for Beds identified the bedroom as the second most popular location for watching TV.
Public health bodies and researchers have linked insufficient sleep to a wide range of health problems, including kidney and heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and stroke. Sleep loss has also been associated with poorer memory and reduced ability to retain new information, and long-term disruption to sleep is strongly linked with an increased risk of neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's disease. Scientists say these cognitive effects stem in part from the role sleep plays in clearing daily metabolic waste from the brain and consolidating short-term memories into long-term storage.
Excessive sleep can also signal health problems. Oversleeping has been associated with heart disease, weight gain, diabetes, cognitive impairment and depression, and may reflect poor sleep quality or underlying conditions such as sleep apnoea or depression. Spending extended periods in bed can disrupt the body's natural sleep–wake rhythms and contribute to grogginess on waking.
Some epidemiological studies have suggested that chronic sleep loss may shorten life expectancy, with figures cited in recent reporting indicating potential losses of several years, varying by sex. Health services warn that both inadequate and excessive sleep warrant attention because of their links to long-term health outcomes.
Recent public discussion of sleep habits has covered related issues, including why repeatedly hitting the snooze button can be harmful to the nervous system and new research pointing to genetic factors that predispose some people to mid-afternoon exhaustion.
Clinicians recommend practical steps to improve sleep hygiene: keep the bedroom for sleep, reduce evening screen time, wind down for at least 30 minutes before bed, maintain a cool, dark sleep environment and seek medical advice if sleep problems persist or are accompanied by daytime impairment.