Screen time making preschool children physically inactive
Preschool children (aged two to three) who spend more than 3 hours a day viewing screens such as mobile/ tablets/ television grow up to be less physically active at age 5.5 years, according to a study published in the internationally acclaimed, The Lancet Child and Adolescent Health journal.
The study revealed that children of the same age group whose screen time was less than 1 hour per day were more likely to have healthier behaviours in later life.
One way that screen viewing may influence health is by replacing time that would otherwise be spent doing something else, such as physical activity and sleep. The latest study is the first to look at the effects of early-life screen use on daily activity in pre-school children.
A Prof. said, " we sought to determine whether screen viewing habits at age 2-3 affected how children spent their time at age 5. In particular we were interested in whether screen viewing affected sleep patterns and activity levels later in childhood.
A former school principal said, parents must show restraint when handing over their mobiles. Parents who give mobiles to kids or feed them while they watch TV is a bad practice and also habit forming.
A teacher agreed saying handing over mobiles has become an easy way out. I hardly see children on the ground as parents prefer to keep them at home or send them to activity class rather than undertake any physical activity. Parents do not have enough time for their children due to their busy schedule, giving mobile in their hand or putting on the TV is easy for parents, that keeps the children busy.
But the problem of excessive screen time is going beyond just lack of physical activity, feels a school principal. Spending too much time in virtual world is hampering social skills of the real world. Poor social skills are genuine concerns to be addressed. Lack of patience and limited attention span is a growing problem among our children due to overuse of smartphones.
Another principal said that the extra screen time soon spills over to misuse, which is a bigger concern. Kids soon start accessing that part of the internet which is dangerous for them. There are cases where children are posting obscene videos and getting exposed to things which are not age appropriate.
The study revealed that children of the same age group whose screen time was less than 1 hour per day were more likely to have healthier behaviours in later life.
One way that screen viewing may influence health is by replacing time that would otherwise be spent doing something else, such as physical activity and sleep. The latest study is the first to look at the effects of early-life screen use on daily activity in pre-school children.
A Prof. said, " we sought to determine whether screen viewing habits at age 2-3 affected how children spent their time at age 5. In particular we were interested in whether screen viewing affected sleep patterns and activity levels later in childhood.
A former school principal said, parents must show restraint when handing over their mobiles. Parents who give mobiles to kids or feed them while they watch TV is a bad practice and also habit forming.
A teacher agreed saying handing over mobiles has become an easy way out. I hardly see children on the ground as parents prefer to keep them at home or send them to activity class rather than undertake any physical activity. Parents do not have enough time for their children due to their busy schedule, giving mobile in their hand or putting on the TV is easy for parents, that keeps the children busy.
But the problem of excessive screen time is going beyond just lack of physical activity, feels a school principal. Spending too much time in virtual world is hampering social skills of the real world. Poor social skills are genuine concerns to be addressed. Lack of patience and limited attention span is a growing problem among our children due to overuse of smartphones.
Another principal said that the extra screen time soon spills over to misuse, which is a bigger concern. Kids soon start accessing that part of the internet which is dangerous for them. There are cases where children are posting obscene videos and getting exposed to things which are not age appropriate.