How Much "Screen Time" Is Best For Your Children?

As adults, it's your responsibility to make sure that there is a healthy balance between digital life and real life, especially in children. They should be guided in making healthy media choices by regulating the time they spend in the digital world. The American Academy of Pediatrics has recently released a new set of guidelines to help parents and families do that.

According to Medical News Today, the focus of the updated recommendations rest not only on parents who don't pay attention to the amount of time their children spend being in front of a digital media, but also how, when, and where they use the media. To support the updated guidelines, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has released an interactive, online tool for families to create their own personalized Family Media Plan.

"Families should proactively think about their children's media use and talk with children about it, because too much media use can mean that children don't have enough time during the day to play, study, talk, or sleep," says Dr. Jenny Radesky, a developmental behavioral expert and pediatrician at University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital in Ann Arbor, MI, and lead author of the first policy statement, "Media and Young Minds," which focuses on infants, toddlers and preschool children.

"What's most important is that parents be their child's 'media mentor.' That means teaching them how to use it as a tool to create, connect and learn," she adds. CBS News reported that the recommendations vary by age group, 0-5 years old and School-age children (5-18 years old), which include several pieces of advice to make sure that parents are aware  of what is happening to their children.

Even though media use alone has not been identified as the leading cause of any health problems in the United States, experts say that excessive media use can contribute to many health risks, including obesity, lack of sleep, school problems, aggression, and behavioral issues. The statement recommends that with the exception of video chatting - that has been shown to help toddlers learn new skills and social interactions - all digital media should be avoided before the age of 18 months old, reported LA Times.

The guidelines also pointed out that parents should not feel pressured to introduce any technology to their child early, and reassure that interfaces are so instinctive that their child will figure them out quickly once they do start using them. For children aged 2-5 years, the statement recommends that media should be limited to 1 hour a day and should involve a high-quality program or activity that parents and kids can view and engage with together.

"Digital media has become an inevitable part of childhood for many infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, but research is limited on how this affects their development," says Dr. Radesky. He also emphasized that the research is solid in children over age 3 and show that programs like Sesame Street can help children learn new ideas, improve learning and social outcomes. "However, under 3, toddlers' immature brains have a hard time transferring what they see on a screen to real-life knowledge. We don't yet know if interactivity helps or hinders that process."

What researchers do know, she adds, is that early childhood is a time of rapid brain development where children need time allocated to play, sleep, learn to handle emotions, and build relationships. While research suggests that excessive media use can distract children from these activities that play an essential part in their development, the AAP highlight that families can maintain a healthy balance.

The AAP also warned that while many apps that parents find are located under the "educational" category in stores on smartphones and tablets, a lot of those are not evidence-based and include little to no input from developmental educators. The recommendations highlighted include banning digital media an hour before bed, turning off devices not in use, and ensuring that bedrooms, mealtimes, and a majority of parent and child playtime remain screen free.

To read the full update recommendation, click here.