Higher screentime linked to delays in infant development, study finds

One-year-olds exposed to more than four hours of screentime a day experienced developmental delays in communication and problem-solving skills at ages two and four, according to a study published this week in The Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics.

The research also found that one-year-olds who were exposed to more screentime than their peers showed delays at age two in the development of fine motor and personal and social skills. But these delays appeared to dissipate by age four.

The study did not find that the screentime caused the developmental delays, but, found an association between babies who were exposed to more screentime and delays in their development. That pattern could well be explained by the value of face-to-face time for young children, experts said.

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David Lewkowicz, a developmental psychologist at the Yale Child Study Center, said face-to-face interaction between parent and child is crucial in giving babies a rich set of information, including about how facial expressions, words, tone of voice and physical feedback all combine to convey language and meaning. “It doesn’t happen when you’re watching the screen,” he said, adding that he was not surprised by the research results.

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The findings, reached by scholars in Japan, were drawn from questionnaires about development and screentime, which were given to parents of nearly 8,000 young children. In general, babies exposed to higher levels of screentime were found to be the children of first-time mothers who were younger, and with lower incomes and household education levels, and those suffering postpartum depression. (Only 4 per cent of babies were reported to be exposed to screens for four or more hours a day, while 18 per cent had two to less than four hours of screentime a day, and a majority had less than two hours.)

The study noted a “dose-response association” between screentime and developmental delays – the more screentime babies were given, the more likely they were to show developmental delays.

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The study’s authors noted that the research did not distinguish between screen time that was intended to be educational and screen time more focused on entertainment. Future studies, the researchers added, should explore that angle.

Lewkowicz said that parents regularly asked him how much screen time was the right amount. His answer: “Talk to your child as much as you can, face-to-face as much as you can,” he said.

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To ask parents to withhold all screentime from their babies was impractical, he said: “No parent would listen to that. It just has to be in moderation. With a heavy dose of real-life social interaction.” – This article originally appeared in the New York Times