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High dose e-media use in children linked to adverse psychosocial behavior ;BMJ

Increased screen time is largely affecting children's psychosocial well-being,claims the reports of a recently published study in BMJ Open. "These risk factors seem to be significant in the long term, and are related to problems in children's socio-emotional development later on. Health professionals and paediatricians have an important role as communicators of the current...
Increased screen time is largely affecting children's psychosocial well-being,claims the reports of a recently published study in BMJ Open.
"These risk factors seem to be significant in the long term, and are related to problems in children's socio-emotional development later on. Health professionals and paediatricians have an important role as communicators of the current research results on the safe usage time of e-media for families, and enhancing parents' skills as regulators of children's safe e-media use. More research is needed on the family conditions of high-dose e-media users."the team has opined .
High-dose use of e-media in young children can be a risk factor for the development of the child. Studies suggest that frequent e-media use in family households might interrupt parent–child interaction, which might cause problems in children's social-emotional development.Thus, high-dose use of e-media can also be related to the child's development, such as language development or development of social skills,which are important to children's psychosocial health. High-dose use can also develop into a behavioural addiction.
While studied less among children, according to a recent study, internet- or screen-based behavioural addictions appear as a child's persistent requests to access e-media and parents' unsuccessful attempts to control the use. It might cause problems with family members, such as parents and siblings, and lead to the loss of a child's previous hobbies and interests.
The World Health Organisation has published guidelines for the total screen time of children aged 2–4 years. The recommendation is a maximum of 1 hour per day for this age group.However, in previous studies, much higher amounts have been reported.
With this in mind, a research team aimed to assess the amount of e-media usage by preschool children and its associations with their psychosocial well-being. They studied longitudinal associations between e-media use at 18 months and psychosocial symptoms at 5 years of age, as well as cross-sectional associations between e-media use (programme viewing and electronic game-playing) and psychosocial symptoms at 5 years. Psychosocial symptoms—that is, internalising and externalising problems and inattention—were assessed at 5 years of age.
Longitudinal associations between e-media use at 18 months and psychosocial symptoms at 5 years of age were studied, as well as cross-sectional associations between e-media use and psychosocial symptoms at 5 years.
Between 2011 and 2017 in Finland,a study design was formulated with Children aged 5 years (n=699).Children's psychosocial symptoms were determined at the age of 5 years using the parent-reported questionnaires Five-to-Fifteen (FTF) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).
Key findings from the result have been highlighted –
- Based on results, 95% of the preschool children exceeded the daily recommended use of e-media set by health professionals.
- The results indicate that increased screen time at 5 years of age is associated with a risk of multiple psychosocial symptoms (OR 1.53–2.18, 95% CI 1.05 to 3.34, p<0.05), while increased levels of e-media use at 18 months was only associated with FTF peer problems (OR 1.59, 95% CI 1.04 to 2.41, p=0.03).
- Moreover, high-dose use of electronic games at the age of 5 years seems to be associated with fewer risks for psychosocial well-being than programme viewing, as it was only associated with SDQ hyperactivity (OR 1.65, 95% CI 1.08 to 2.51, p=0.02).
"Children's social-emotional development is influenced by environmental factors, including e-media habits. Although children's e-media use patterns might not seem problematic when considering use on a daily level, they do have risks in the long term. Thus, health professionals play a key role in providing information for parents on the safe use of e-media devices in young children in order to protect their healthy development."the team concluded.
For the full article follow the link: Niiranen J, Kiviruusu O, Vornanen R, et al High-dose electronic media use in five-year-olds and its association with their psychosocial symptoms: a cohort studyBMJ Open 2021;11:e040848. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2020-040848
Primary source: BMJ
Dr Satabdi Saha (BDS, MDS) is a practicing pediatric dentist with a keen interest in new medical researches and updates. She has completed her BDS from North Bengal Dental College ,Darjeeling. Then she went on to secure an ALL INDIA NEET PG rank and completed her MDS from the first dental college in the country – Dr R. Ahmed Dental College and Hospital. She is currently attached to The Marwari Relief Society Hospital as a consultant along with private practice of 2 years. She has published scientific papers in national and international journals. Her strong passion of sharing knowledge with the medical fraternity has motivated her to be a part of Medical Dialogues.