Reducing screen time for children
“Look gramps, those birds are fighting,” Quin whispers while pointing toward the top of a grand fir. Looking up from the seat of my kayak, I attempt to identify the species of bird making loud squawking sounds while flapping enormous wings.
“They’re great blue herons,” my wife states with excitement. “Looks like there are three nests and four birds; someone has to leave.” We chuckle, nest our kayaks together and watch the battle.
After 15 minutes of cackling, posturing, head bobbing and pecking, a large bird falls from the tree, flaps her wings twice then glides to another perch across the inlet. Amazed at the sight, we float silently, heads craned to the sky while water splashes the side of our boats on this beautifully sunny Father’s Day in North Idaho.
A large frog jumps from a lily pad beside the flotilla, changing our focus from the sky to the water. My 2-year-old granddaughter Fiona stands from her seat on my daughter’s lap on the orange crush, our large tandem kayak she shares with her husband, to examine the source of the splash. My daughter grabs the back of Fiona’s lifejacket, ensuring her exploration does not result in joining the frog in the shallow bay. Fighting her mother’s will, Fiona splashes the water then giggles. Today is a good day!
Minecraft, YouTube funny cat videos, “Jesse,” and “Liv and Maddie,” mindlessly occupy hours of potentially productive time from children each weekend. Virtual reality through television and computer screens does not replace genuine reality.
On this Father’s Day weekend our family might choose to stay inside, watch television, play video games and live in a virtual world, but instead decides to live genuine reality. The experiences we enjoy today are life-changing. On our drive home we talk about baby ducks floundering in weeds, osprey searching for fish and we laugh.
We can watch other people enjoying a paddle on the Outdoor Channel or we can examine the pictures we take to remind ourselves of this experience; we become the reality on our screen.
The U.S. National Library of Medicine offers the following research on screen time and children.
“Screen time” is a term used for activities done in front of a screen, such as watching TV, working on a computer, or playing video games. Screen time is sedentary activity, meaning you are being physically inactive while sitting down. Very little energy is used during screen time.
Most American children spend about three hours a day watching TV. Added together, all types of screen time can total five to seven hours a day.
Too much
screen time can:
• Make it hard for your child to sleep at night.
• Raise your child’s risk of attention problems, anxiety and depression.
• Raise your child’s risk of gaining too much weight (obesity).
Screen time increases your child’s risk of obesity because:
• Sitting and watching a screen is time that is not spent being physically active.
• TV commercials and other screen ads can lead to unhealthy food choices. Most of the time, the foods in ads that are aimed at kids are high in sugar, salt or fats.
• Children eat more when they are watching TV, especially if they see ads for food.
• Computers can help kids with their schoolwork. But surfing the Internet, spending too much time on Facebook or watching YouTube videos is considered unhealthy screen time.
Current screen time guidelines:
• Children under age 2 should have no screen time.
• Limit screen time to one to two hours a day for children over age 2.
• Despite what ads may say, videos that are aimed at very young children do not improve their development.
How to decrease
screen time:
Cutting down to two hours a day can be hard for some children because TV may be such a large part of their daily routines. But you can help your children by telling them how sedentary activities affect their overall health. Talk to them about things they can do to be healthier.
• Remove the TV or computer from your child’s bedroom.
• DO NOT allow TV watching during meals or homework.
• DO NOT let your child eat while watching TV or using the computer.
• DO NOT leave the TV on for background noise. Turn on the radio instead, or have no background noise.
• Decide which programs to watch ahead of time. Turn off the TV when those programs are over.
• Suggest other activities, such as family board games, puzzles or going for a walk.
• Keep a record of how much time is spent in front of a screen. Try to spend the same amount of time being active.
• Be a good role model as a parent. Decrease your own screen time to two hours a day.
• If it is hard not having the TV on, try using a sleep function so it turns off automatically.
• Challenge your family to go one week without watching TV or doing other screen-time activities. Find things to do with your time that get you moving and burning energy.
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Send comments or other suggestions to William Rutherford at bprutherford@hotmail.com or visit pensiveparenting.com.