When was the last time you went to your pediatrician and during the assessment asked (if at all they did) how much screen time does your child watch in a day? Did they offer any education or follow up questions? Chances are it probably did not happen. The science on screen-time use is in its infancy stages. What that means is, it takes a while before it actually becomes practice. Before guidelines are put in place, standardized screening is implemented, there is usually a lag in years.
More funding needs to be thrown behind screen time research in the early years. Pediatricians and healthcare providers could be more cautious in blanket questions such as how much screen time does your child use and really tease apart if it is actually Electronic screen syndrome versus other disorders found in childhood such as attention deficit. In short, there is a gap in practice around screen time use in clinic and our kids are bearing the brunt – from misdiagnosis to overmedication with stimulants that just exacerbate the underlying problem if really the screens are the culprit.