There are a million different ways to parent and as technology continues to evolve, there will likely be millions more.
Back when television first became ubiquitous in family homes, I'm sure parents were excited to have something they could plop their kid in front of and stay entertained while Mom or Dad got some chores done or even just a chance to rest.
Fast forward to now and not only is there still television, but there are computers and game consoles and tablets and smartphones. The sheer number of screens in a person's life is staggering.
Heck, I'm writing this at a desk with three monitors in front of me.
The quality of that screen time is also in question. Like if the child is playing an educational game is it better than "Baby Shark" on repeat?
Most frazzled parents probably agree that a smartphone is a godsend when you've got a cranky toddler in the checkout line for groceries.
The study found that screen time was the strongest predictor of behavioral problems in five-year-olds.
They included things like parental stress, how much sleep the child got, and socioeconomic factors.
But it was found that screen time increased the likelihood of things like inattention, lack of focus, and other issues often associated with ADHD.
The data came from the Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development (CHILD) project, which has parents of five-year-olds across Canada fill out lengthy questionnaires about their child.
Co-author of the study Piush Mandhane, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Alberta, said that their data shows 30 minutes or fewer would be best.
Pediatrician Michelle Ponti, who chairs the Canadian Paediatric Society’s digital health task force toldThe Globe and Mail that only 13% of those studied reported more than two hours of screen time per day and that it didn't differentiate between types of screens or how they were being used.
She said:
"A child that’s left to their own devices on a mobile device to click, click, click through inappropriate types of websites is different than a child sitting with a parent and working through an educational app."
h/t: The Globe and Mail
