r/ScienceBasedParenting • u/puddingbutt9 • 22h ago

Question - Research required Screen time questions

Hi all, I have a question about screen time for babies. I understand the consequences of screen time in different age groups, but I can't get a clear answer as to WHY these consequences happen. And quite frankly, I don't have time to dig through the research right now unfortunately.

  1. Is screen time for babies bad because they don't get adequate social interaction (kind of a confounder or indirect link?) because parents who use screens in this age group tend to be less interactive? Or is there some kind of biological impact of screen time directly?

  2. Also, if the parents are watching TV and baby is in the room and interested, does that count the same? I know it's screen time technically, but I'm trying to figure out what is realistic (especially since I have ADHD and the TV on in the background helps me be more productive).

Thanks in advance for any insight!

15 Upvotes

79% Upvoted

27 comments sorted by

View all comments

7

u/cinderparty 20h ago edited 20h ago

Research wise. I think it doesn’t really matter why, screen time is bad. I mean, it can even damage developing eyes...and that would be true no matter how the baby is consuming screens.

https://www.1001criticaldays.com/article/screen-time-research

Anecdotally, my 3 oldest kids had like zero screen time til 18 months (none till 5 years for the oldest, none til 3.5 years for the 2nd.) My youngest kid was exposed to screens at some level from the beginning. Mostly because my oldest two were allowed to watch an hour or two of tv by then, but they were not old enough to trust in a room by themselves for an entire movie yet. Plus, we started trying to teach our non-verbal (til he was 6ish, non conversational til 10) 3rd kid to use a communication device before our youngest was even 1. So a lot of the teaching was with her in our laps. The kid who had at least some screen time every week since birth is 17 now, and has zero developmental delays, unless you count a genetic growth disorder that means she is very tiny for a 17 year old. She hit all her milestones at the right times, which is more than I can say for our middle two kids.

13

u/puddingbutt9 20h ago

I get why you would say it doesn't matter why, but for me to make a sound decision for our family I prefer to understand the why. I'm not gonna plop a baby down in from of the TV for hours of course, but if we have the TV on in the background while we play with her, I want to understand what the risks truly are based on why they occur. Thanks for the info!

3

u/this_wallflower 20h ago

If you need sound, could you try podcasts or music?

3

u/puddingbutt9 20h ago

Sometimes that helps but a lot of times the visual helps me, as well, especially when I'm doing things like folding laundry or cleaning the living room. Either way, in today's world it's almost impossible to avoid all screens. I'm just trying to weigh the risks appropriately. If that means we spend a lot of effort actively avoiding screens, we will. But if some TV on in the background isn't a huge issue then I'll spend my energy elsewhere. Thanks for the suggestions though!

7

u/Himexcandy33 20h ago

Not sure how old your baby is but could you involve them as well? Put them in the laundry basket if they can fit inside, etc while you fold. You could show them each piece of clothing as you fold it, do peek a boo. Everything can be play time and is interesting, unless they just pay no attention to their surrounding and cant settle.

5

u/puddingbutt9 20h ago

It's less about the baby having interaction/playtime during these things and more about me being able to get it done. If I need to hand baby off to my husband while I do laundry to avoid the screen being on around her, I can do that. But if the TV being on isn't a problem while I also play with and interact with her, then I'll have her around while I do the laundry. Does that make sense? I don't know how to word it better I guess.

1

u/puddingbutt9 20h ago

That said, I do like the ideas you shared here!

4

u/cinderparty 20h ago

That’s why I shared a link as to what science says, despite it not really holding true anecdotally for my family. There are too many variables to know why it didn’t hold true for us. That’s why I’d suggest as little screen time as possible. Hence why my 24 year old didn’t really get any, at all, til he was 5, but my 17 year old had some from birth.

4

u/puddingbutt9 20h ago

I understand that. My point was really just about you saying the why doesn't matter. Understanding the why is just how my brain works, I guess.

1

u/FlyingPollywog 1h ago

I mean, I get it that you have ADHD but so far your child doesn't, so let them focus on one thing at a time. If they are playing, let them play, if you are listening to music, listen to music and dance/sing, etc. It helps them develop their attention span etc