Kids Under 5 Should Have No More Than 1 Daily Hour of “Sedentary Screen Time.”

From The Washington Post:

The answer, according to WHO, is never for children in their first year of life and rarely in their second. Those aged 2 to 4, the international health agency said, should spend no more than an hour a day in front of a screen.American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has also made similar recommendations regarding kids’ use and exposure to screens.

[…]

Research on older children has associated screen time with behavioral and development issues, but research on babies and toddlers is more inconclusive. One study published in JAMA Pediatrics in January found that screen time could delay toddlers’ language and sociability skills. Another study published this month in Pediatrics found that parents interacted with, and spoke to, their toddlers more when reading print books than when they read electronic books to their children.

In the U.S., a $300M federal research study has already determined that screen use harms kids’ brains in a multitude of ways.

American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has also made recommendations regarding kids’ exposure to cell phones, cell towers, and other sources of wireless radiation.  In 2012, they endorsed Ohio state rep Dennis Kucinich’s “Cell Phone Right to Know” Act.

WHO has also weighed in on cell phone and wireless radiation exposure.  (See 1, 2)

In 2014, the American Cancer Society noted that the WHO promised to conduct a formal assessment of risks from radiation exposure from utility “Smart” Meters.  In 2017, it was reported that “Smart meters cause a “cornucopia of health issues” for occupants of the 57 million American homes equipped with the new technology, according to the World Health Organization and Cancer.org.”

Despite this, utility “Smart” Meters are still being promoted as beneficial to customers and eco-friendly by utility companies and even some environmentalists and health care professionals.  It’s ridiculous.  People everywhere are still fighting to get these meters removed from their homes and communities.  (See 1, 2, 3)

Reducing screen time is important.  Also important – recognizing that no “safe” level of wireless radiation has been scientifically determined for children or pregnant women.  None of this will apparently stop tech companies from marketing screens and everything else even though they’ve admitted they may eventually be held financially liable for causing harm to the public.