Health
Study links screen time at ages 1 and 6 to lower academic performance and weaker memory in later childhood
A longitudinal study of 502 children found that higher screen viewing during infancy and around the start of primary school was associated with poorer cognitive outcomes years later.
The short version
- Researchers tracked 502 children from infancy through middle childhood to analyze screen viewing habits and cognitive outcomes.
- Higher screen exposure at ages 1 and 6 was linked to lower academic performance at age 9 and weaker working memory at age 10.5.
- Screen viewing at ages 2 and 3 did not show a statistically significant relationship with the measured cognitive outcomes.
- Researchers noted that screen duration alone does not account for content quality, device types, or parent co-viewing.
Key facts
- Researchers from Inserm and the National University of Singapore tracked 502 children from infancy into middle childhood using data from the Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) birth cohort.[ScienceDaily]
- Higher screen viewing at age 1 showed the strongest negative association with cognitive outcomes among all time points evaluated.[ScienceDaily]
- Screen exposure at ages 2 and 3 showed no significant link to later academic or memory outcomes, but the association re-emerged at age 6.[ScienceDaily]
- The study was published in the World Journal of Pediatrics and funded in part by research foundations in Singapore and France.[ScienceDaily]
What remains uncertain
- The study relied on parent-reported screen duration and did not evaluate differences in content quality, device type, or co-viewing with parents.[ScienceDaily]
Sources
- Screen time at ages 1 and 6 may matter more than parents realizeScienceDaily - Science