Parents must set rules and impose limited exposure times to screens. Indeed, even slightly reducing the time spent in front of a screen can improve their physical and mental conditions, their sleep and their scores according to the results of a study published in the specialized journal JAMA Pediatrics.
To understand the impact of screen time, researchers at the University of Iowa analyzed the behavior of more than 1,300 schoolchildren in Iowa and Minnesota who were already participating in an obesity prevention program.
Scientists collected data from students, parents, teachers and school nurses on screen time, exposure to media violence, bedtime, behavior, grades, weight and height at the start of the study and again seven months later.
Children should spend less time in front of screens
Computers, tablets, cell phones, video games and televisions, kids spend a lot of time exposed to screens. On average, he spends more than 40 hours per week in front of a screen. 72% of children under eight have used a cell phone, like 38% of those under two.
During the study, the parents had to limit even slightly the time of exposure to the screens of the children.
In just seven months, researchers found differences in behavior (decreased aggression and violence), improved sleep, decreased weight, and increased grades for children who had less contact with a child. screen.
“When it comes to screen time, parents often feel like they’re losing control,” says Douglas Gentile, a developmental psychologist and assistant professor at the University of Iowa. “Yet parents have a much greater effect on the well-being of their children than they realize.”
Parents just need to start new good habits to their children from an early age and change their own behavior to set a good example.
