Toddlers and Screens: More Than 1 Hour a Day Can Cause Developmental Delays and Have Lasting Effects on Attention, Language, Memory, Social and Motor Skills

By B.N. Frank

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has a long history of advising against kids’ excessive use of screens as well as exposure to digital, electronic, and cell phone and wireless WiFi radiation-emitting devices and infrastructure.

There’s plenty of research that has already suggested – if not already proven – that the more ALL KIDS use screens – the more this is harming them behaviorally, educationally, emotionally, mentally, physically, psychically, and spiritually. See 1, 2, 3 4, 5, 6, 7.

New research released earlier this week confirms this once again:

From Time.com: Too Much Screen Time Can Have Lasting Consequences for Young Children’s Brains
From Reuters: Too much toddler screen time tied to worse social, motor skills by kindergarten
From Healthline.com: Excessive Screen Time for Kids Can Cause Developmental Delays by Kindergarten

For many years now, Silicon Valley parents (aka tech inventors) have been sending their kids to “low tech schools” and limiting their use of technology at home. Within the last few months, they’ve been reportedly taking more desperate measures to shield their kids from screens– even spying on their nannies.

Regardless, it’s not illegal for businesses to create software, programs, and technology specifically for American kids or to advertise these products to them – including Sesame Street – even though this has been illegal in other countries for a while now.

It’s ultimately up to parents to determine how much longer they will allow businesses and schools to encourage kids’ excessive use of screens and technology not only for recreational purposes – but for their education as well.