3 Ways To Make Your Child’s Screen Time Healthier

There are screens everywhere we look: on our phones, televisions, tablets, and laptops. We use them for communicating with friends and family, shopping, reading the news, and occasionally even seeing the menu at a restaurant. Many children also use them in school, starting as early as in elementary school.

When children are in middle school, peer pressure may be tremendous, and parents fear that their child may feel alone if they don’t get a cell phone. Common Sense Media reports that 42 percent of children had a mobile phone by age 10. By age 12, the figure is 71%. By age 14, the percentage is 91 percent.

We hear amazing things about how much the next generation loves technology and how it may be possible for technology to get better during their lifetime. However, we hear just as much (and often more) about the negative effects of excessive screen time on young brains. Consequently, many parents question how much screen time is too much for their children.

Finding a healthy balance is the solution, to put it simply. According to studies, screen time has both positive and negative effects, and these effects are strongly related to how much or how little you use media and technology. One strategy to avoid the addictive and unhealthy parts of a smartphone is to be able to redirect your child’s attention towards healthier and more educative uses of it.

For example, Suzyapp is an application that allows parents to make their child’s screen time smarter by sequencing educational applications before recreational ones. This has a number of psychological benefits, including making it easier to control impulses, learn more through digital content, and resist the urge to get something right away, all of which benefit them greatly in the short and long run.  

So, is screen time good or bad? 

The answer to this much-discussed subject seems to be both good and bad. The pros and cons of screen time depend on a number of factors, such as the type and quality of content, the amount of time spent, the degree of active involvement vs. passive watching, and whether or not the viewer is with other people who are also interacting with the content (eg. A family watching a movie together, you scrolling through social media next to your child, etc.) 

As there is no scientific evidence that screen time is directly damaging for children, many experts believe it is more important to concentrate on what children are doing on screens rather than how much time they spend in front of them.

Of course, allowing a baby to watch television for long periods of time has been shown to be detrimental to his or her health. However, when a parent watches an educational program with their older kid, responding to what they see, asking questions, and interacting together may have a beneficial impact on screen time. The criteria of content, quality, and engagement are crucial to distinguish the two. 

Tips to make screen time smarter 

The American Academy of Pediatrics says that children under 18 months old should not use media, except for video conferencing. If you give digital media to kids between the ages of 18 and 24 months, make sure it is of high quality and try to stop them from using it alone. Children aged 2 to 5 should be limited to one hour of high-quality television each day.

As your kid matures, a one-size-fits-all strategy becomes less effective. You must determine how much media your child can consume each day, as well as which channels are appropriate.

Furthermore, eliminate fast-paced programs that are difficult for young children to comprehend, violent material, and applications with a great deal of distracting information. Limit advertising from applications, since young children have difficulty distinguishing between advertisements and accurate information.

Promoting digital literacy in your children is an important part of reducing the negative effects of screen time. Digital literacy is being able to live, study, and work in a world where digital technologies like the Internet, social media, and mobile devices make it easier to communicate and get information. Digital literacy transcends technical expertise. 

In a world that is becoming more digital, it is important that children have the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that keep them safe and give them power while encountering digital media of different kinds. This includes their use of digital devices for play, socializing, searching, and learning. What defines digital literacy can vary depending on the child’s age, culture, environment, and the type of content they typically consume. 

How can you strategize what your child digitally consumes? 

SuzyApp allows you to condition your children’s access to their favorite apps on their usage of applications of your choosing. In just five minutes and three easy steps, you can control how much time your child spends on screens and make sure they have a healthy relationship with them. Your children’s screens are optimized for quality screen time, while the app allows the promotion of educational applications and blocks others until they consume the quality material you designate.

SuzyApp is based on the idea of delayed gratification, which has many benefits that not only help the child grow but also strengthen the bond between the parent and child. It enables the development of the prefrontal cortex, the region of the brain responsible for emotional regulation, intellect, and social skills. Check out this post to learn more about ways to aid your child’s growth by exercising their prefrontal cortex.

SuzyApp enables you to improve your children’s focus by providing age-appropriate educational activities and restricting access to information that might lead to attention issues if consumed excessively. It displays the consumption linked to your child’s profile and information that allows you to change your child’s screen use circumstances at any time.

To learn more about SuzyApp, click here.