Media usage of young children: What should I pay attention to?

Once you have a baby, completely new questions will arise in your life, and suddenly you'll be thinking about topics you never would have considered before. It's a wonderful, exciting time, but we also understand if your head starts to spin at some point!

As a relatively new phenomenon that has increasingly occupied many parents in recent years, screen time in front of the TV, tablet, and others is also included. In this article, LILLYDOO pediatrician Ariane explains how screen use affects childhood development and whether certain media can even have a positive influence. She also shares her very personal tips.

What impact does time in front of the screen have on my child's development?

Screen time has a significant impact on childhood development. There are studies that show, for example, that just 30 minutes of daily screen time greatly increases the risk of speech development disorders, especially in early childhood from two to five years old. Even younger children already exhibit sleep disturbances starting from 20 to 30 minutes of screen time. After just one hour of media consumption per day, the risk of obesity increases by 13 percent. In older children and adolescents, a linear relationship is observed between screen time and concentration problems as well as anxiety and depressive behaviors. We also know that the foundations for later problematic media use are often laid by excessive screen use in early childhood. While individual digital media have some positive effects, they generally perform worse compared to analog learning methods. A positive effect of digital media cannot be demonstrated for children under 18 months.

What skills are necessary for my child to use media?

Experts agree that a certain foundation of must be in place for digital media to be used purposefully at all – conversely, this means that no media should be used during the first 18 months of life. Furthermore, basic features of emotional and social development are necessary so that toddlers have a fundamental understanding of gestures, facial expressions, and communication rules, and can recognize and interpret them during media use.

This is recommended by the BZgA (Federal Centre for Health Education)

The BZgA provided the following recommendations for children's daily media use in 2020:

How practical do you find the Recommendations from the BZgA (Federal Centre for Health Education)?

I believe the guideline is quite health-promoting. Whether all recommendations are actually practical for everyday life depends on both parents and external circumstances. I would compare the guideline to the (eating ): a nice idea, but I also don't always manage it. Certain basic rules are important, including 1. considering the and 2. establishing . Additionally, I would advise moms and dads not to be discouraged by other parents who are supposedly . The easy way is not always the best.

Orientation in everyday life

Which guidelines do you recommend to parents for orientation?

I like to follow the "3-6-9-12 rule": screen media not before 3 years old, no own gaming console before 6 years old, no own smartphone before 9 years old, no unsupervised computer or internet use before 12 years old. I especially emphasize the importance of abstaining from all media until the age of 18 months. This also includes watching short videos as a distraction during brushing teeth and similar activities, which is often not perceived as media time. Dear parents, please avoid such distraction tactics, instead pick up your child's favorite toy and get creative!

Can certain media, when used intentionally, even have a positive effect?

Manufacturers of various children's computers, game consoles, and of course learning apps often highlight the benefits of digital media. However, it is clear that a positive effect of learning programs under 24 months has not been scientifically proven. For older children, individual programs can serve as a useful supplement, but they are rarely superior to traditional, analog learning. Reliable data especially show that early childhood foreign language acquisition cannot be achieved digitally.

An important exception are children with a confirmed developmental delay or disabilities. In the therapeutic environment, there are many meaningful programs that support children and adolescents in their development and specifically promote them in certain areas. However, it is also crucial here to distinguish between private and educational use and to adhere to screen-free times with plenty of outdoor activity. Additionally, children with a developmental delay need to be especially guided in their media consumption. An open conversation and education of families with children with a developmental delay or mental health disorder are important to recognize stress early and to be able to offer assistance.

How can parents best support their children in their media use?

Parents should establish clear rules with their children and also regularly monitor them. Already at an early age, we often experience a certain helplessness of parents regarding consistent rules and enforcing initial agreements. This is partly natural: parents' own needs for a brief period of freedom for everyday activities such as cooking, household chores, and phone calls compete with norms and well-known recommendations for children. It is important to be strong here, even though of course you cannot always do everything perfectly. Nevertheless, I advise parents to continually reflect on themselves and to seek conversations with their children, especially during adolescence. With young children, media consumption should be particularly guided and experienced together from the beginning. This enables direct communication about the content and shared emotions. It allows for watching a film together for longer periods – or stopping it earlier if a parent notices that the content is not appropriate. Unsupervised media consumption should be avoided for as long as possible and should not start before the age of 6.

role model

What role do my own media consumption and my role model function play?

This is very clear: a strong media consumption by parents leads to increased consumption by children. It is all the more important for moms and dads to be aware of this role model function and to reduce their own media use if necessary, especially in the presence of children.

May I watch TV or be on my phone when my baby is very young, for example while breastfeeding, or does it harm him?

Please don't! Regardless of the radiation exposure emitted by every electronic device, the main counterargument is that attention is not fully focused on the infant. However, this is especially important during the first year of life and, of course, in toddlerhood, so that the baby can develop the foundation of human communication and the so-called basic trust. Therefore, I advise that, even if the best friend or mom just needs advice: put the phone aside and respond later!

What is your own experience and what personal tip would you give to other parents?

Right at the beginning, you are nonstop busy with your baby and often wonder in the evening what you actually did all day – media consumption is probably hardly a topic at all. This gradually changes around the first birthday. Personally, I refrained from using all "own" electronic devices with my daughter until she was about four or five years old. In her early years, I focused on classic games, and spontaneous play ideas were never in short supply. The first program she was allowed to watch was the classic Sandmännchen – initially only in small portions, then the full show at four or five years old. Nowadays, my daughter is also familiar with the typical teenage repertoire of movies and series, but never in marathon mode. We never had a game console or similar, and she has always accepted that well. For me, as a mother of a teenager, the area of social media will surely play a big role in the coming years.

Are there specific media content that you can recommend for young children? What should parents pay attention to when choosing?

It must also be emphasized here once again: No supposedly highly academic media content is more valuable than analog communication, especially when screen time exceeds 30 minutes in early childhood. It is important that media consumption with a learning goal in early childhood is accompanied by parents. Through interactive communication, every content is automatically improved and made more understandable for young children. Generally, animated films are less recommended, as real scenes are better understood by young children. Content-wise, realistic films with simple fantasy elements are more suitable. It is no coincidence that Astrid Lindgren films like Pippi Longstocking and Emil of Lönneberga have delighted generations of children. If games are played on the tablet at all, then associative games involving spatial thinking or later educational apps, for example around sciences such as chemistry and physics, are meaningful. This can certainly help create incentives for areas that might not otherwise be of interest to children.

Thank you very much to Ariane for the insights she shared with us regarding the influence of media usage on childhood development, for her recommendations, and personal experiences. What will surely reassure many parents: nobody is perfect, and despite all good intentions, media are now an integral part of our daily lives – and those of children. Of course, you are not a bad mother/father if your three-year-old watches a YouTube video so you can take a shower in peace – on the contrary, most parents can probably confirm how grateful they are that tablets and the like occasionally provide a well-deserved mini-break. ;)

Nevertheless, it is important that you constantly remind yourself of your role model as a mom or dad and offer your child various stimuli for play and movement that have nothing to do with screens. And honestly: when you flip through a picture book with your little explorer or dive into imaginary worlds together while playing, phones, tablets, and the like can easily be put aside for a while.