Does Screen Time Really Affect Child Development?
Curt de Gourville 06 Feb 2024
Today I share with you a synopsis of my presentation to the Cherryville, BC monthly Monday Night Health Club on Digital Devices and The Effect of Excessive Screen Time.
Ideally we all need a Digital Detox or Brain Enema from the amount of time and the content of screen time. It is a matter of temperance but there are other now known and published issues that these devices cause which we need to be aware of.
Average daily screen time use by platform -
- WhatsApp - daily - 33.5 minutes, 2 billion minutes of audio calls, 100 billion individual messages sent.
Facebook - In 2023 – average of 35 minutes per day on Facebook
Instagram - As of 2024, Instagram has 2.4 billion registered users, 33 minutes per day average use.
TikTok - In the U.S - 82 minutes per day on average using TikTok's Android version
Netflix - 3.2 hours per day per user
The recommendation is absolutely NO screen time for children 2 years and under as their eyes are not properly developed and it also impedes cognitive development (explained in some detail last night). They cannot translate what they see into real world experience, observed only 90% brain development under 5 years with more screen time causing lower brain white matter integrity proven by MRIs. This is promoted by both the WHO and American Psychological Association.
Excessive screen time was positively associated with behavioral and conduct problem, developmental delay, speech disorder, learning disability, autism spectrum disorders (ASD), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and there were significant dose-response relationships. Source: Association between screen time and developmental and behavioral problems among children in the United States: evidence from 2018 to 2020 NSCH NIH PubMed May 2023
For adults in generalComputer Vision Syndrome affects 75% of the people who work on computers, most markedly those over the age of 40. Effects of CVS are as follows:
Physical Effects Eye fatigue, Dry eyes, Burning eyes, Nearsightedness, Potential Retina Damage, Light sensitivity, Blurred vision, Headaches, Pain in the shoulders, neck or back.
Cognitive Effects Depression, Anxiety, Brain Fog, Over stimulation of the brain, Increased heart rate (watching exciting or thrilling movies, cartoons, etc), Lower attention span, Difficulty focusing or lack of focus, Impatience, Sleep deprivation
In brief it affects the whole body.
Some recommendations- NO SCREEN TIME AT ALL FOR CHILDREN UNTIL 18 TO 24 MONTHS
- Ditch the desk, for a period of time – See the 20/20/20 rule
- 20/20/20 Rule. Every 20 minutes, look at an object 20 feet away for 20 seconds
- Avoid Glare – lower screen brightness to reduce the amount of glare
- Limit digital device screen time to 2 hours per day outside of work or study
- Hold head up and lower device to increase distance from eyes to screen
- If your wrist are bent on the laptop you are too close to the screen
- Approximately 2 to 2.5 ft away from the screen. 40 inches is ideal
Some spiritual counsel:
The brain nerves which communicate with the entire system are the only medium through which Heaven can communicate to man and affect his inmost life. Whatever disturbs the circulation of the electric currents in the nervous system lessens the strength of the vital powers, and the result is a deadening of the sensibilities of the mind. ...............
Intemperance of any kind benumbs the perceptive organs and so weakens the brain-nerve power that eternal things are not appreciated, but placed upon a level with the common. The higher powers of the mind, designed for elevated purposes, are brought into slavery to the baser passions. CCH 101.2
