Screen Time vs. Play Time
Technology is an ever-evolving intricate part of our lives, especially our children’s lives. There are always positives and negatives that come out of advancing technology. One of the negative impacts is the amount of time that children spend on screens. Screen time is taking over “free” playtime for many children.
Many parents are at a loss as to the long term ramifications of screen time, as well as how to provide reasonable limits for their children. The World Health Organization recently issued guidelines for young children under the age of five years old. According to these guidelines, they advise that children under the age of five spend less time in front of a screen. Parents should focus on an active lifestyle that promotes playtime rather than sedentary screen time.
The new guidelines initiated by the World Health Organization focuses its efforts and studies on physical activity, sedentary behavior, and quality of sleep for children under the age of five. The World Health Organization experts evaluated the adverse effects on young children of insufficient sleep, and the time invested in watching screens. These experts concluded that enhancing physical activity, reducing sedentary time, and securing quality sleep in young children will promote and strengthen both their physical and mental health as well as their overall wellbeing. Increasing physical activity and quality of sleep will inhibit obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. The World Health Organization also recommends shifting screen time to quality sedentary time. Quality sedentary time includes reading and completing puzzles as this encourages proper child development. Furthermore, establishing these guidelines during the first five years of life is critical for children’s developmental, physical, and mental health.
World Health Organization recommendations for infants (up to one-year-old)
- Be physically active several times throughout the day (includes floor-based play, prone position for those children not yet mobile).
• Not be restricted for more than one hour at a time (including strollers, high chairs, or on caregiver’s back)
• Avoid screen time and encourage reading and storytelling when sedentary.
• Encourage fourteen-seventeen hours of sufficient sleep for zero-three months and support twelve–sixteen hours of adequate sleep for ages four–eleven months. Additionally, we should promote naps to encourage the overall quality of sleep for these ages.
World Health Organization recommendations for children ages one-two years:
- Be physically active for at least three hours throughout the day (including moderate to high-intensity physical activity.
• Not be restricted (including strollers, high chairs, or on caregiver’s back) or sit for more than one hour at a time.
• Avoid screen time for one-year-olds. Limit to one hour of screen time for ages two years old. Encourage reading and storytelling when sedentary for both ages.
• Encourage eleven-fourteen hours of sufficient quality sleep as well as including nap time.
World Health Organization recommendations for children ages three-four years:
- Be physically active for at least three hours throughout the day (including sixty minutes of the allotted time as moderate to high-intensity physical activity).
• Not be restricted for more than one hour at a time (including strollers, high chairs, or on caregiver’s back)
• Limit to one hour screen time for ages three to four. Encourage reading and storytelling when sedentary.
• Promote ten-thirteen hours of sufficient sleep and may include nap time.