Look out for your newborns! They might just become those techy little ones before they even turn a year old. Time.com reported that more than a third of kids less than a year old have access to some sort of mobile device, a study revealed.
The study's findings showed that by the time kids turn two years old, they have used at least one mobile device. These findings were showcased at the annual meeting of The Pediatric Academic Societies annual meeting.
Time.com reported the following data generated in relation to the study conducted:
Among the families, 97 percent had TVs, 83 percent had tablets, 77 percent owned smartphones, and 59 percent of the households had Internet connection at home.
With regard the kids, 52 percent among those below a year old have viewed TV shows, 36 percent of the newborn population has gotten their hands on the TV screen, 24 percent of newborns have used mobile phones to make outgoing calls, 15 percent of infants have accessed apps, and 12 percent from the newborn population have played video games.
Kids grow fond of devices and gadgets as they age. In fact, 26 percent two-year-old kids and 38 percent four-year-old kids tinker with gadgets for a minimum of at least an hour everyday on an average, according to the said study.
Parents admitted that they allow kids to use gadgets and devices to keep the latter busy. The study revealed that 73 percent of the parents interviewed allowed kids to tinker with mobile gadgets while doing chores. Meanwhile, 60 percent allowed the children to use their gadgets while out getting errands done.
The reasons why kids get engrossed in technology?
1. To calm children (65 percent of parents)
2. To give kids a good night's sleep (29 percent)
Alarmingly, 30 percent of the parents only reportedly talked to pediatricians about gadget use.
The authors of the study's publication wrote, "A better understanding of the use of mobile media in young children and how it varies by population groups is critical to help develop educational strategies for both parents and health providers."
Meanwhile, Los Angeles Times cited Dr. Hilda Kabali as saying, "We didn't expect children are using the devices from the age of 6 months. Some of the children were using the screen for as long as 30 minutes."
Kabali is a medical specialist that headed the October and November 2014 surveys at Philadelphia's Einstein Medical Center.
Child development specialists encourage parents to wait for preschool years before introducing technology to kids, according to PBS.org. Dr. Carolyn Jaynes, a learning designer at Leapfrog Enterprises, said:
"Children under two years of age learn best from real-world experiences and interactions, and each minute spent in front of a screen-based device is a minute when your child is not exploring the world and using their senses, which is extremely important in their development process."
