Want kids to have less screen time? Put your phones down, pediatrician says

If parents want their kids to spend less time on their iPads, they'll have to ditch the screen time themselves, a Saint John pediatrician says.

Sarah Gander,a general pediatrician,took part in the Canadian Pediatric Society's 96th annual conference in Toronto, where health-care professionals discussed digital use bychildren and theimportance of parents monitoringscreen time.

"We want our kids to not necessarily be devoted to the screens all the time, but yet we're on our phones all the time," Sarah Gander said in an interview Monday with Information Morning Fredericton.

The society recently released guidelines for screen time use by children five to 10 years old.

The guidelines say "moderate" use of screen time would be two to four hours a day.

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• Parents have fretted through the ages about kids' fascination with technology, experts say

The organization found three-quarters of Canadian parents are concerned about how much time their children spend using digital media.

Thirty-six per cent of children 10to 13 years old spend three hours a day or more using digital devices for purposes that aren't related to school, the society's research suggests.

In younger children, research has found an association between depression symptoms and sedentary behaviour tied to screen time.

In 2017, the society advised that children under the age of two not have any screen time. Children between the ages of threeand five should have no more than one hour of screen time a day, and screens should be avoided at least one hour before bed.

Gander said parents should mitigate screen time by engaging in conversation with family and friends at home and keeping screens away at meal time. Physical activity and time spent outdoors should become a priorityfor children and youth.

At the same time, the society has found digital technology has benefits for children's mental health. Research suggests it allows kids to make stronger, more diverse friendships. An hour ofscreen time a day age may also be associated with a lower risk of depression, compared with no screen time at all.

"This screen time is just a fun piece of the day," Gander said.

The societysuggests creating a family media plan, which would include individualized time and content limits. Media multitasking using two or more devices at once should bediscouraged, especially during homework, since it candisrupt learning.

Stress manifesting in children

During the conference, health-care professionals discussed mental illness among children and youth.

Over the past 10 years, Gander said, she has seen a spike in referrals related to children suffering from mental health issues.

"We're certainly seeing that stress manifests in our children every day," she said.

With high poverty rates, stress and trauma, Gander said, New Brunswick children face a lot of adversity, which can be related to mental health issues suchas attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, depression, anxiety and substance abuse.

Gander said her centre in Saint John saw more than 700 referrals related to ADHDalone in 2018.And at her office, it takes between nine and 13 months to see a pediatricianregarding ADHD.

According to theMental Health Commission of Canada, more than 800,000 Canadian youth experienced significant mental health problems in 2013.Many of them didn't receive treatment.

Gander said more needs to be done to open communication channels among different departments in government. This includes communication amongschools, practitioners, mental health and addictions services.

"A lot of our services are siloed into different departments within government. One of the big things is to start to break down those barriers for communication between people."

Gander also said there needs to be equal access to medication and counselling services.