Screen time versus Greentime – What would you choose?
There are 1000 things to do daily in your backyard and neighborhood , than sit in front of devices. Please choose wisely.
Recent research on media usage has shown the detrimental effects on the brain of development of young children . Experts are saying that we need to restrict media usage for children from 0- 8years old. For children 0 to 2 years, experts recommend no exposure to TV, iPads , iPhones or any other devices. Between the ages of 2-8 years old, it needs to be restricted because as we know the attention span of young children is already short and studies have shown that media usage is impacting and reducing that attention span and this becomes very problematic.
Dr. Supreet Mann, director of research with Common Sense Media and Dr. Lee, clinical psychologist at the Boston Children’s Hospital, in one of their webinar, mentioned about the science behind brain development. They said it is important for parents to understand the developing brain of their young child, as I have mentioned in my website on my posts and videos. At birth , the brain is only 25% developed , fast moving images, etc.
overstimulate the brain of young children and it becomes very difficult for babies and toddlers to process the input and be able to deal with colors, fast moving images, etc. Dr. Lee says that the brain of babies are very plastic and over stimulation impacts sleep, self regulation, etc. in a very negative way. For older children 2-8 yrs old the video length matters. It’s better to engage children in videos that follow a storyline and not short, fast moving clips, she also emphasized that viewing must be restricted.
Here are the five most important steps you can take and enforce.
1. Limit screen time.
2. Be consistent to manage screen time usage.
3. Choose media, which has educational value.
4. View with your child and explain what is appropriate and not appropriate.
5. Allow only age-appropriate and engaging content.
I will close by saying that media content that encourages curiosity, critical, thinking skills, raise confidence, and are interactive matter most.
