The amount of screen time and the type of content can affect a kindergartener's mental health

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2023-12-05 03:00

International

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More screen time and more exposure to content not tailored for children is associated with mental health problems in kindergarten-aged children, according to international research. The team collected data on the amount and type of screen use for nearly 16,000 children aged three, five and six, and compared this data with their mental health. They say assuming a child is exposed to a certain amount of screen time, watching a higher proportion of educational programs was associated with fewer mental health problems, while a higher proportion of programs not tailored to children was associated with a higher risk of mental health problems. The researchers say regardless of content, a higher amount of screen time was consistently associated with mental health problems.

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Journal/
conference: JAMA Pediatrics

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China

Funder: This study was supported by grant 82103864 from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, grant SQ2022RA2C000254 from Ministry of Science and Technology of People’s Republic of China, grant 2022you1-2 from Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, grant 21YF1428000 from the Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality, and grant 2020CXJQ01 from Shanghai Municipal Health Commission. The Shanghai Children’s Health, Education and Lifestyle Evaluation, Preschool (SCHEDULE-P) study was funded by Shanghai Education Committee.

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