Screen time for kids: How much is too much at every age

Screen time used to mean television, although few people referred to it this way. For children, TV was primarily an evening or Saturday morning indulgence. On nice days, most kids couldn’t wait to get out of the house and into all kinds of adventures.

Today, this scenario is inverted. An explosive Harris Poll finds 75 percent of children ages 8-12 would prefer to play outside, but being alone outdoors isn’t as carefree as it used to be. So they’re indoors, on screens.

In this article, we’ll walk you through what’s healthy and appropriate, at every life stage.

Screen time for kids—what’s healthy?

What effect does screen time have on growing brains and bodies? These days, children clamor for cell phones at a younger age than ever before. Are phones for kids a good idea? What about tablets?

The University of Rochester Medical Center conducted a study on iPad kids and brain development, recommending that iPads should not be introduced before two years of age, and should be limited so as not to interfere with brain development.

At two, children are likely toilet-trained, toddling, and talking. Setting kids barely out of diapers in front of fast-paced screen activity or reward-heavy viewing is hazardous to their health.

Recommended screen time by age

Whereas once TV, a passive medium, might have given a harried parent an hour (or a few precious minutes) to focus on household tasks, the internet is interactive. And “just because toddlers like to push buttons and watch videos does not mean they are ready for a computer,” say pediatrics specialists.

Old-school TV was schedule-based. An animated show might have lasted 30 minutes or one hour, then segued into a soap opera or some other daytime programming kids would have found boring and moved on to other activities. Today, our devices offer unlimited entertainment.

Dr. Carolyn Jaynes, a learning designer, explains, “Each minute spent in front of a screen-based device is a minute when your child is not exploring the world and using their senses, which is extremely important in their development process.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, excessive screen time has been linked to:

• Obesity
• Inadequate sleep schedules and insufficient sleep
• Behavior problems
• Delays in language and social skills development
• Violence
• Attention problems
• Less time learning

The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests families build digital literacy with impressionable young minds. AAP tips include teaching kids to:

• Recognize advertising versus actual content
• Protect private information
• Understand how the internet distorts body image perception
• Realize online posts are permanent and cannot be truly deleted
• Report harmful content to an adult

Today, screen-time guidelines emphasize content and quality over strict time limits for older children, focusing on the “five Cs”: child, content, context, co-viewing, and crowding out. Limits for children are generally set at:

• 0-2 years: No screen time, except for group video chats with family or friends
• 2-5 years: Under one hour per day, co-viewing with supervision
• 5-17 years: Generally no more than two hours per day, except for homework

However, this recommendation doesn’t align with what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports as the shocking reality of actual screen time:

• 8-10 years old: 6 hours/day
• 11-14 years old: 9 hours/day
• 15-18 years old: 7.5 hours/day

And screen-addicted children grow into screen-addicted adults. A recent Ooma survey of average screen time worldwide found that the US isn’t even the most screen-addicted country: South Africa and Brazil topped the list for people aged 16-64, who are staring at their screens for more than nine hours daily. While a lot of it may be work related, it’s still an extreme amount of time for weary eyeballs. Not to mention posture.

The Irish screen-time solution: Screen-free childhood

However, creative solutions are not only possible—they already exist.

Several years ago, a seaside village in Ireland, recognizing that social media and other online activity calls for a collective solution, launched a grassroots “no smart devices” initiative, in which parents could voluntarily agree not to buy their kids a smart device before age 12. The goal is to give children time to ease into digital culture. Nearly everyone in Greystones, from parents and school principals to the kids themselves, bought in.

The program is working: children’s mental health has improved, and other communities are interested in following Greystones’ example. While this town’s movement is one smart solution, the longer-term answer is to make technologies safer for kids.

According to a recent survey of about 1500 11- to 13-year-olds in Florida, two-thirds say they got their first smartphone when they were 10 or younger. The evidence against so much screen time at such a tender age reveals the damage: rising rates of anxiety and sleep disturbances, along with the newest form of childhood cruelty, cyberbullying.

Clearly, internet safety for kids needs to keep pace with screen-time usage. How do we turn a global virtual platform into a safe space?

Creating screen-free activities

What can parents do to help mediate screen time for kids? One pediatrics expert suggests parents treat screen time like dessert: as a treat, not the main meal three times a day.

As with the Irish initiative, screen reduction for kids calls for creativity from adults. One way to reduce screen time is to do a digital detox and make calls using an a MyPhone by Ooma. Retro is cool again, and think what a relief it’ll be to have a conversation without constant notifications.

While your kids may not immediately appreciate the oversight when it comes to setting limits on their screen time, they will benefit—and this is the nature of parenting, after all.

If your child wants a party, for instance, you can help them come up with a great theme, then align it with all the trimmings that make for a great teen party: music, dancing, games, art stations, possibly even baking—so everyone will feel connected. Present it as a VIP event: you’ll be collecting phones at the door, and if the host child wants pictures, there’s a regular camera available.

If you want to go completely screen free, think about introducing one or more of these tried-and-true activities kids have enjoyed for generations:

• Legos
• Scavenger hunt
• Board games
• Family book reading—everybody takes a page
• Fort building
• Vintage dress up—either from parents’ old clothes or a trip to a thrift store
• Backyard “camping” (put up a tent and bring out snacks)
• Puppet show
• Balloon volleyball
• Play-doh
• Crafts

Tech isn’t going away, but as in every era, smart childhood guidance can help make screen time a productive learning experience rather than an escape from the real world.

For example, what if your household recreates the old form of screen time, using Blu-ray instead of streaming, or finding versions of shows with built-in commercials? It can be educational: you can explain that commercials were traditionally when one took a bathroom break or went to the kitchen to grab a snack. You could even create an entire video sequence of older, slower children’s programming and “market” it to your kids as a treat.

No matter how many generations of smartphones or other devices companies develop, the trees will always be older—and smarter. They’re connected to one another via their root system, something kids can strive to emulate. As many members of Gen Z now sadly realize: they grew up glued to their phones, and missed out on human connection.