Screen time at age 1 linked with communication and problem solving issues later

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2023-08-22 01:00

International

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Screentime is linked with delayed development in young children, and the kind of delay varies with age and amount of screen time, according to international researchers. The team assessed 7,097 mother-child pairs using a questionnaire to investigate the relationship between screen time and various developmental delays, including in communication, problem-solving, personal skills, and social skills. They found increasing screen time at age one was linked with an increasing risk of communication and problem-solving at age two to four, although personal and social skills did not seem to be affected. This type of study cannot prove cause and effect, only a possible link, and the team says developmental issues may arise after increased screentime, but it's also possible that children with developmental delays tend to spend more time in front of a screen.

Media release

From: JAMA

Screen Time at Age 1 and Communication, Problem-Solving Developmental Delay at Ages 2 and 4

About The Study: In this study including 7,097 mother-child pairs, greater screen time for children at age 1 was associated with developmental delays in communication and problem-solving at ages 2 and 4. These findings suggest that domains of developmental delay should be considered separately in future discussions on screen time and child development.

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Journal/
conference: JAMA Pediatrics

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: Tohoku University, Japan

Funder: The Tohoku Medical Megabank Project Birth and Three-Generation (TMM BirThree) Cohort Study was supported by grants JP17km0105001, JP21tm0124005, and JP19gk0110039 from the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development. The funder had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit the manuscript for publication. Dr Kuriyama reported receiving grants from the Japanese government during the conduct of the study. No other disclosures were reported.

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