Britain’s first official guidance on children’s screen time, issued by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, steers clear of recommending time limits beyond advice to avoid smartphones, games and other digital devices in the hour before bed so as not to interfere with sleep.
“There is a tendency to blame screen use for the ills of modern society,” said Russell Viner, president of the college. “We should not think of screen time as harmful in itself but it may displace other positive activities such as face-to-face socialising, exercise and sleep.”
The college based its guidance both on a review of all available scientific evidence for the effects of screen time on children and on a consultation exercise involving parents and young children.