For more than 15 years, the American Academy of Pediatrics has been clear about its policy toward screen times for children: babies aged 2 years old and younger should have absolutely no exposure to screens. For older kids, that recommendation loosened only slightly, limiting screen time to a maximum of two hours per day.
Just like the on/off switches on our devices, pediatricians offered no flexibility in such restrictions. Until now.
"In a world where 'screen time' is becoming simply 'time,' our policies must evolve or become obsolete," Dr. Ari Brown of the AAP said in a statement concerning the organization's long-held guidelines, which were first issued in 1999, two years before the invention of the iPod.
So this past Summer, the agency held a symposium that brought together leading doctors and researchers to evaluate data and provide thoughtful, science-driven advice based on the evidence, "not just the precautionary principle." And now — at a time when more than 30 percent of US children first play with a mobile device while still wearing diapers — Brown is sharing the AAP's more nuanced approach to family media use.
Above all, Brown stresses that "digital life begins at a young age, and so must parental guidance." And although formal recommendations are still forthcoming, to help empower parents now, the agency has released the following key messages: