Help Parents Replace Screen Time With Talking

We’ve all seen it: a lovely family sitting in a restaurant, with music playing (we’ll say Van Morrison) and food waltzing by. Everyone at the table is oblivious, however, because everyone only sees their device—kids on tablets, parents on smart phones, teens on something cool I haven’t heard of yet. Ah, the ubiquitous smart phone and family of other digital handheld gadgets. Many of us would be hard-pressed to live without them anymore. Most of us are on them constantly to email, use apps, send texts and search the Internet. While we as adults choose to use our devices however we like, should we give our children the same freedom to dive down the digital rabbit hole, unchecked? New research says no. A recent study from the University of Toronto says every 30 minutes of daily screen use increases a child’s risk of developing speech and language delays by 49 percent for those ages 6 months through 2 years. Specifically, researchers found difficulties with expressive language. While the study appears to show a direct correlation between device use and language difficulties, the authors caution more research needs to be completed. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no screen time at all for children younger than 18 months. For children in the 18- to 24-month-old range, the Academy recommends “parents choose high-quality programming and watch with their children to help them understand exactly what they are seeing.” Another study from University College Lo...
Source: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Press Releases - Category: Speech-Language Pathology Authors: Tags: Speech-Language Pathology Language Disorders Technology Source Type: blogs