97% of children aged 3 to 10 will be exposed to screens during these February holidays.
- Studies show an association between excessive screen use and an increased risk of overweight, obesity, difficulties in language development and delayed cognitive development in children.
- 97% of children aged 3 to 10 will be exposed to screens during this February vacation, according to a new survey from OpinionWay.
- They will spend an average of two hours there per day.
According to a new survey by OpinionWay for tonies®, 97% of children aged 3 to 10 will be exposed to screens during these February holidays. They will spend an average of two hours there per day.
55% of parents will suggest screen activities to their children during this period, such as watching cartoons or children’s shows (43%), playing on a computer, tablet or smartphone (20%) or reading on a tablet or e-reader (7%).
Furthermore, 74% of parents consider it easier to keep children away from screens during summer vacations than winter vacations, and 59% note that their children prefer to be on screens indoors. than playing outside when it’s cold.
Faced with the omnipresence of screens, three-quarters of parents (75%) would like to have simple and effective solutions to limit the time spent on them by their children on vacation.
Younger parents (aged under 30) appear more aware of the risks of screens among the youngest: 30% of them admit to this “strict” even “authoritarian” on the subject, which is twice as much as parents aged 40 and over (17%). This is also more the case for parents of children aged 3 to 5 years old (22%) compared to parents of children aged 9 to 10 years old (16%).
Screens: why are children overexposed during the February holidays?
“This time spent on screens can be explained by a difficulty in putting in place rules regarding screens during the holidays. Several obstacles can complicate the situation, such as grandparents not daring to say no to their grandchildren or lack of time to offer them other activities”, analyze the authors of the survey.
Latest lesson from the survey: 90% of parents surveyed report that their children aged 3 to 10 are exposed to screens daily throughout the year, and only 2% of parents indicate that their children are not particularly interested through the screens.
Overexposure of children to screens: what are the risks for their health?
The World Health Organization and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend not exposing children under 2 to screens, and then limiting the time to 1 hour per day thereafter.
Deleterious effects of screen use in childhood and early childhood have already been highlighted in the scientific literature. “Studies notably report an association between excessive use of screens and an increased risk of overweight, obesity, difficulties in language development and delay in cognitive development,” specifies Public Health France.
In France, screen time is on average 49 minutes at 2 years old, 1 hour 09 minutes at 3 and a half years old and 1 hour 23 minutes at 5 and a half years old.
