Scientists from the University of Otago, New Zealand, are expressing anxiety over the need for regulating children’s exposure to the digital world in order to protect them from potential dangers. According to a study published in the New Zealand Medical Journal, 12-year-old children spend a significant portion of their free time behind screens, with this figure increasing even further in the evenings.
The study, which explores the post-school habits of children, found that they spend about a third of their time after school engaged in screen activities, a number that exceeds 50% after 8:00 PM. Dr. Moyra Smith, a senior researcher at the University of Otago, highlighted that this is much higher than the recommended two hours of screen time per day for schoolchildren.
The data for the study was collected through the KIDS’CAM project, where 108 children wore cameras that took pictures every seven seconds. It was found that the majority of the time spent behind screens was used for playing games and watching programs, with 10% of the time involving the use of multiple screens simultaneously.
“The use of screens negatively impacts children’s health and well-being, leading to issues such as obesity, poor mental state, and lack of physical activity,” stated Dr. Smith. “It also affects children’s ability to concentrate and regulate their emotions.”
Dr. Smith further emphasized that the use of screens has become an ordinary part of children’s lives, and it likely increased after the collection of Kids’cam data. With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a sharp increase in screen usage, especially among children who heavily rely on smartphones. Popular sites such as YouTube and Netflix are frequently accessed, with about one-third of children under 14 years old actively using social networks, mainly TikTok.
Additionally, Dr. Smith expressed concern about the exposure of children to advertising related to vaping, alcohol, gambling, and fast food, as well as the presence of sexism, racism, and online bullying.