Toddlers are little busybodies and are always looking for someone or something to entertain them. Some children can be observed off in their own little world from time to time using their imagination to entertain themselves. However, children using their imaginations is required less and less as technology advances and parents use it to entertain their children; without ill intent. Many of us have experienced a toddler or small child ask us if we have any games on our phones or are found peering over our shoulders at what we are looking at on our mobile devices. This could be a family member's child, or even a complete stranger's child that is just very social. This is so common an experience, even memes have been made about this phrase, “got any games?”. And even more recently, kids will find a way to watch cocomelon by any means necessary.
Many parents use phones, tablets, televisions, and other devices to keep them entertained. These devices are used at home, in childcare facilities, and in school settings. As these technologies advance and interaction with these technologies becomes more frequent, more studies have been done on the long term effects of screen time. The American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends limits on screen-based media stating “cognitive-behavioral risks.” There has even been a study stating; “increased screen-based media use has been associated with lower microstructural integrity of brain white matter tracts supporting language and emergent literacy skills in prekindergarten children” (Hutton et al. 2020). This is detrimental to childhood development and is one of the reasons that we see increased levels of ADHD in our children today. There is another study that was done on the physiological affects of screen time on children and it states that, “Excessive digital media use by children and adolescents appears as a major factor which may hamper the formation of sound psychophysiological resilience” (Lissak 2018).
There is extensive research on how childhood development, especially in the first four years of life, is vital to someone's foundation for their life and psychological health. We ought to be better protecting our children and using the technology we have as a small aspect of their life in a positive manner. Parents have autonomy in how they choose to raise their children and how much screen time they have. However, as a society we can take the research that is coming out and use it to educate others and share our knowledge. Pediatricians can consider the ethics of beneficence and nonmaleficence to educate parents about this important time in their child’s life and how screen time can affect development.
Hutton, J. S., Dudley, J., Horowitz-Kraus, T., DeWitt, T., & Holland, S. K. (2020). Associations Between Screen-Based Media Use and Brain White Matter Integrity in Preschool-Aged Children. JAMA pediatrics, 174(1), e193869. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2019.3869
Lissak G. (2018). Adverse physiological and psychological effects of screen time on children and adolescents: Literature review and case study. Environmental research, 164, 149–157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2018.01.015
This is very prevalent AND relevant. I remember flip phones being the standard when we were young, and I guarantee those phones had a much smaller effect on our brains! I think you're correct about the responsibility pediatricians have to educate parents on the current literature. When I think about how much screen time has affected my attention span even as an adult, I begin to realize that toddlers must be completely bombarded with the negative effects. Reading your post also reminded me of the fact that you never see kids playing outside anymore. In case it wasn't enough to know that screen time negatively affects cognitive ability, it also impacts BMI and physical health. This study I linked measured screen time and time playing outside in children aged 3 to 6 over 4 years. They concluded that more screen time was associated with a higher BMI by the age of 6. If I ever have kids I'm getting them a Rubik's cube instead of a phone!
ReplyDeleteSchwarzfischer P, Gruszfeld D, Socha P, Luque V, Closa-Monasterolo R, Rousseaux D, et al. (2020) Effects of screen time and playing outside on anthropometric measures in preschool aged children. PLoS ONE 15(3): e0229708. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0229708