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BY JOHN SOLTES
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
Parents should limit television viewing for children less than 2 years old, according to a new study from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Instead of watching Nickelodeon or Saturday morning cartoons, the report recommends unstructured play time as a more valuable option.
“There are better ways to help children learn at this critical age,” according to an official press release. “The AAP stands by its recommendation to keep children under age 2 as ‘screen-free’ as possible.”
The current trend in the United States is for parents to put on “educational” programming for their children. Approximately 90 percent of households are exposing their youngest kids to nearly two hours of television per day. Many children already have a TV set in their bedroom by age 3.
Even though television programming for infants and toddlers is often marketed as “educational,” the AAP contends that children under age 2 cannot comprehend the lessons in the content.
Also, if children were to focus on play time rather than electronic media, they would have a better chance to “think creatively, problem solve and develop reasoning and motor skills at early ages.”
The study finds that television viewing around bedtime can even cause poor sleep habits and irregular sleep schedules.
“In today’s ‘achievement culture,’ the best thing you can do for your young child is to give her a chance to have unstructured play,” stated Dr. Ari Brown, lead author of the report. “Children need this in order to figure out how the world works.”
The AAP findings were first presented at its national conference in Boston on Oct. 18. The study was later published by the Pediatrics journal.
