Letting Toddlers Play With Screen Devices is Causing Early Addiction to Technology

Do you let your young child play with tablets or smart phones for more than an hour a day? You might want to think about cutting back their screen time. Conducted by researchers at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, the study was published in ‘JAMA Pediatrics.’It found that the World Health Organization recommendations for preschooler use of screens — including television and computers — is being exceeded in both the U.S. and Canada. Over the course of two years, 4,000 mothers were surveyed about the screen use of their children between the ages of one and three years old. During this time, researchers discovered that screen use increased by three times, from close to 50 minutes to more than 150 minutes. This causes bad screen habits to begin early. If parents intervene though, kids stand a better chance of not becoming so dependent on devices. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, children under 18 months of age should not be exposed to screens except for family member interactions. Kids between the ages of 18 months and five years should have no more than one hour a day of exposure to screens. The highest amount of screen time was experienced by children of first time mothers and kids in home-based child care.

And to any one that says children don’t get addicted to electronic devices… have you ever tried to take an iPad away from a 3 year old? It’s terrifying.