Times have changed a lot since we were little, when our leisure was based on going out to the street to play, or to the park with other children, ... and the TV, some console or the computer, but always at very specific times.
Today there are screens everywhere and most boys and girls can watch TV at any time of the day (because they broadcast drawings at all times), have access to their parents' mobile and even receive as a gift a tablet to play and consume media on demand, and although this can be positive in many aspects, it can be dangerous in many others, because an excess or imbalance in the time spent can seriously affect a child's development.
For this reason, the American Academy of Pediatrics has recently published the new recommendations for fathers and mothers regarding the use of screens and media.
A more screens, less time for other things
What has been seen for some time is that in some cases the media consumption is such that is negatively affecting the psychomotor development of children, and also to social and emotional development. By moving less, playing less, using the body less, interacting less with other children and adults and also talking less, many children now have deficiencies that they would not otherwise have.
This affects them when talking and listening, learning from the world and life, and even at bedtime, because children who exercise, who go outside and who can develop their creativity and imagination with the game Free rest better at night.
Simply put, in the most exaggerated cases, there are children who are growing up misfits to the world in which they live. That is why the AAP is making a call to responsibility on the part of parents, to act as controllers and mediators between content, time and children.
General recommendations of the AAP
We leave you below with the summary of the recommendations that the AAP offers, which will be published in the magazine Pediatrics in the November issue of this year 2016.
No screens before 18 months
In order to promote a healthy relationship with the environment and with the intrinsic motivations of babies, the AAP establishes the recommendation of avoid as much as possible the exposure of babies up to 18 months to the screens. Yes they accept, or do consider that there may be that contact, if it is given through video chats.
That is, if it is to communicate with family or friends, they do not consider it negative that babies up to 18 months are in front of the screens, for the rest of the situations, yes.
High quality content between 18 and 24 months
Once the children pass the year and a half of age it is considered that for those parents who want to introduce digital content to their children (because it is not necessary to do so in reality) the recommendation is that the content is of high quality, both in terms of content and games, and that is always in the company of children to help them understand what they are seeing.
High quality content no more than one hour between 2 and 5 years
After the barrier of two years, and until five, it is due limit the use of media to one hour a day, and the contents have to be of high quality. Again, parents have to accompany their children to help them understand what they are seeing and apply it sensibly to the world around them.
From 6 years: balance and common sense
From 6 years of age it is considered that what to look for is the balance of the game with digital media and the consumption of programs within the daily life of children. That there are consistent limits both in the time they spend in front of the screens and in the type of content they use, without affecting sleep, physical activity and their way of communicating with other children and adults.
In addition, it is suggested that schedules totally free of media content be assigned, such as mealtime, a while before going to sleep (may affect your ability to get a peaceful sleep) or while doing other activities (if you are painting, drawing, playing ... turn off the background television), as well as having screen-free areas in the house, such as the rooms.
We live in the era of screens and we cannot say that they are bad in themselves because they are a window to communication and to the present and the future, but real life is not what happens in there, but what happens in a child's physical environment. That is why we must promote that before knowing in depth what is cooked in there, before being absorbed by them, know what happens in your world, on a day-to-day basis, that you learn to live, to be autonomous, to have respect for others, social and physical abilities and that, in short, have time to be a child.
