The UK’s leading doctors have said parents should not allow children to take phones and other electronic devices into their bedrooms or use them during meal times. These pieces of advice are by the chief medical officers to guide parents on how to manage their children’s use of technology.
Dame Sally Davies, the chief medical officer for England, said:“Time spent online can be of great benefit to children and young people, providing opportunities for learning and skills development, as well as allowing young people to find support and information,”
“But we need to take a precautionary approach, and our advice will support children to reap these benefits and protect them from harm.”
Many say there is not enough evidence to issue guidelines on how much time children should spend online or using devices. There is evidence for the broader aspects of children’s use of technology based on how it might upset activities such as sleep. Parents and carers are told to tell children not to look at devices when crossing the road and talk to them about what they are using the devices for.
The guidelines come days after a report by the Science and Technology select committee flagged a lack of high-quality research into the effects of screen time on young people, this included studies that explored the impact of particular uses of screens.
The UK Chief Medical Officers’ advice for parents and carers on children and young people screen and social media use is:
- Sleep matters: Getting enough, good quality sleep is very important. Leave phones outside the bedroom when it is bedtime.
- Education matters:Make sure you and your children are aware of, and abide by, their school’s policy on screen time.
- Safety when out and about: Advise children to put their screens away while crossing the road or doing an activity that needs their full attention.
- Family time together: Screen-free meal times are a good idea – you can enjoy face-to-face conversation, with adults giving their full attention to children.
- Sharing sensibly: Talk about sharing photos and information online and how photos and words are sometimes manipulated. Parents and carers should never assume that children are happy for their photos to be shared. For everyone – when in doubt, don’t upload!
- Keep moving: Everyone should take a break after a couple of hours sitting or lying down using a screen. It’s good to get up and move about a bit. #sitlessmovemore
- Talking Helps: Talk with children about using screens and what they are watching. A change in behaviour can be a sign they are distressed – make sure they know they can always speak to you or another responsible adult if they feel uncomfortable with screen or social media use.
- Useful helpful phone features: Some devices and platforms have special features – try using these features to keep track of how much time you (and with their permission, your children) spend looking at screens or on social media.
Social media company, Facebook, has welcomed the guidance and said it wanted young people to be safe online. Facebook has introduced a new tool to help people see how much time they were spending on Facebook and Instagram. It also has daily reminders and a way to limit notifications.
The research done showed an association between screen-based activities and negative effects such as increased risk of anxiety and depression.
Dr Bernadka Dubicka, of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: “We do not yet have enough evidence to draw a definite link between screen time and mental health problems – but it is clear that some of the content that young people are viewing online, such as pro-anorexia, suicide and self-harming content, can be incredibly harmful,”
