Less passive screen time, structured schedule improves youth's mental health during pandemic: Study

The number of pandemic-related stressors was strongly associated with increases in both internalizing (β=0.345) and externalizing (β=0.297) symptoms during the pandemic after controlling for pre-pandemic symptoms. Early in the pandemic, youths who spent less time on digital devices (β=0.272), as well as those who consumed less than 2 hours of news per day (β=0.193), had lower externalizing symptoms, while greater time spend in nature was marginally associated with lower internalizing symptoms (β=-0.124). Getting the recommended amount of sleep (β=0.-0.158) and having a more structured daily routine during stay-at-home orders (β=-0.164) were associated with lower levels of externalizing psychopathology six months later. Finally, the strong association between pandemic-related stressors and psychopathology was absent among children with lower amounts of screen time and news media consumption. The authors write that the study identifies a set of strategies that can be beneficial to families when considering how to support the mental health of their children during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The authors add: "Mental health problems increased dramatically among children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among those who experienced high levels of pandemic-related stressors including serious illness or death of a family member, significant financial loss, and social isolation. A number of simple strategies families engaged in appeared to promote better mental health during the pandemic including having a structured daily routine, limiting passive screen time use, limiting exposure to news media about the pandemic, and to a lesser extent spending more time in nature, and getting the recommended amount of sleep."

Reference:

The study titled, "Promoting youth mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: A longitudinal study," is published in the journal PLOS One.

DOI: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0255294