High levels of smart device screen time, such as looking at a mobile phone, is associated with around a 30% higher risk of myopia and, when combined with excessive computer use, that risk rose to around 80%.
Major organizations have warned against children's use of hand-held devices in recent years. Tablets, phones, and computers do not cease to be harmful devices just because we have little else to distract us these days.
Children's average daily screen time increased from 53 minutes at age 12 months to more than 150 minutes at 3 years, according to a recent analysis. By age 8, children were likely to log the highest amount of screen time if they had been born to first-time mothers.
Children who have more screen time have lower structural integrity of white matter tracts in parts of the brain that support language and other emergent literacy skills.
