Chris Bennett: Opportunity missed with screen time advice

It was with no small measure of despair that the first ever guidance on screen time for children was issued early in the New Year.

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health gleefully announced that there was no evidence that TVs, phones and tablets were toxic to child health. This was interpreted by most media outlets that parents should worry less about children’s screen use (BBC) or that there is no direct evidence that screen time is bad for kids (Sky).

What was picked up on from the guidelines was advice to limit kid’s screen use before bedtime. The overriding message was that parents should negotiate screen use so technology lived around family time and not the other way around. Good luck with that one.