Children between the ages of 8 and 18-year-old consume an average of 7 hours and 11 minutes of screen media per day. This is an increase of 2.5 hours in just ten years. Considering there are 24 hours in a day, kids are spending 1/3 of the day in front of a screen. Although many parents feel that some of this screen time is educational, it should be limited. An overabundant amount of screen time is bad for children’s health, allows for children to be exposed to inappropriate content, and causes children to lose much needed social skills.
First of all, an overabundant of screen time leads to poor health in children. For example, obesity is just one issue. According to the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention, 1 in 5 school aged children are obese. How are they getting this way? Too much screen time. When children are staring at screens, this means they are inactive and have a habit of snacking. They are constantly seeing ads that encourage them to eat unhealthy foods such as potato chips and drink empty-calorie soft drinks that often become favorite snack foods (Paula). The article “Why Limit Your Child’s Screen Time” argues teens who watch more than 5 hours of TV per day are 5 times more likely to be overweight than teens who
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When children spend majority of their free time in front of screens, the ability to socialize is diminished. They show less interest in offline or "real-life" relationships (Healthy Children). Since these children are not interacting, they do not learn nor practice normal social skills that are needed to help them develop into a well-rounded adults. While children know how to search the Internet and use a variety of apps, they do not know how to talk one-on-one to another person. By not developing the ability to interact with others face-to-face, these children are at risk for failed relationships and future employment (Mayo Clinic