Children’s screen time should be cut to so many hours a week: study

Less screen time means less bad behavior.

In just two weeks, parents can see significant improvements in their child’s mental health and behavior by reducing their children’s free screen time to just three hours per week, according to a new study published in JAMA Network Open.

On average, children spend seven to eight hours a day on screens for entertainment. However, when the children drastically reduced their screen time, they showed significant improvements in their overall behavior and emotional well-being.

Researchers from the University of Southern Denmark analyzed data collected from 89 families with 181 children and adolescents aged 4 to 17.

Half of families were asked to limit their children’s free screen time to a maximum of three hours a week per person – a big difference from the average seven to eight hours a day most children spend.

Those who did found that their child improved internalizing symptoms—behaviors that are often hidden reactions to emotions and stress—and their prosocial behavior—those that aim to benefit others.

Children who changed their habits experienced a decrease in behavioral difficulties moving from the “borderline” category to the “normal” category, according to the standardized Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire rating.

Avoiding screen time a day helped children better process their emotions and improve their social interactions.

Previous research published in JAMA Pediatrics has shown that children should be banned from screen time until age 3, as it can lead to developmental delays.

Researchers at Drexel University found that infants and toddlers who are allowed screen time are more likely to exhibit atypical sensory behaviors associated with neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

The researchers also found that the amount of screen time babies were allowed and their age directly affected their development. Each hour of daily screen time increased a child’s chances of experiencing sensory problems by 23% at 18 months, but fell to 20% at 24 months.

An exception is video chatting – as the social benefits are likely to be beneficial to the child’s development.