Watching TV Linked to Abnormal Behavior in Toddlers, Parents Warned

Too much TV might not make your child’s eyes go square, but it may affect their ability to process the world around them, scientists have said.

The data adds to a growing number of concerning developmental outcomes linked to screentime in toddlers and young children.

In the latest study, published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, researchers at Drexel University’s College of Medicine in Philadelphia demonstrated a link between TV viewing time and unusual sensory behaviors. This includes disengagement or disinterest in activities, seeking more intense environmental stimulation, and being overwhelmed by intense stimuli like loud sounds and bright lights.

To find this association, the team analyzed data from the National Children’s Study, a study into TV habits of 1,471 babies and toddlers between 2011 and 2014.

Sensory processing outcomes were assessed at 33 months and parents or caregivers completed a questionnaire to provide insights into the children’s behavior and reactions to environmental stimuli.

The team found that at 12 months screen exposure was associated with a 105 percent greater likelihood of exhibiting “high” sensory behaviors, such as excessively touching or smelling objects, being easily overwhelmed by lights and noise, not registering certain environmental stimuli, and avoiding sensations like having their teeth brushed.

At 18 months, each additional hour of daily screen time was associated with a 23 percent increased likelihood of exhibiting these behaviors, and at 24 months, each additional hour of screen time was associated with a 20 percent increased likelihood of exhibiting these behaviors nine months later.

“This association could have important implications for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism, as atypical sensory processing is much more prevalent in these populations,” Karen Heffler, MD, an associate professor of Psychiatry in Drexel’s College of Medicine and lead author on the study, said in a statement.

“Repetitive behavior, such as that seen in autism spectrum disorder, is highly correlated with atypical sensory processing. Future work may determine whether early life screen time could fuel the sensory brain hyperconnectivity seen in autism spectrum disorders, such as heightened brain responses to sensory stimulation.”

However, more work is needed to confirm this association between behavior and screentime and to establish any underlying cause.

“This is an observational study and cannot establish that there is any causal link between screen exposure and children’s outcomes,” Dorothy Bishop, emeritus professor of developmental neuropsychology at University of Oxford, said in a statement.

“As the authors note, without a randomised trial, these results are ambiguous. Such associations as were found could arise if children with sensory challenges were more likely to seek out screens, and/or some other uncontrolled variable (e.g. noise in the home) led both to more screen exposure and sensory challenges.

“They also point out other limitations: both sensory difficulties and screen time were based on parental report, which is not objective, and the screen time measure provided no information about the type of screen time.”

In the meantime, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry recommends children under 18 months should limit screentime to video chatting only, while 18- to 24-month-olds should be limited to watching educational programs with a caregiver. By age 2 to 5, the association recommends a maximum of one hour of non-educational screentime on weekdays and three hours on weekends.

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