Page 16 - RU Robert Wood Johnson Medicine • Summer 2020
P. 16

n Matthew Scharf, MD, PhD
clock,” explains Matthew Scharf, MD, PhD, assistant professor of medicine and medical director, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Comprehensive Sleep Center. “When children get too much light exposure, including blue light, too late at night, it may affect the circadian cycle and negatively affect sleep.”
Sleep disturbance can impact academic performance and behavior, says Dr. Scharf, because it can make children hyperactive, irritable, and unable to focus.
When it comes to older children, screen time also can have an impact. Like many adults, adolescents often watch content on their phones, tablets, TVs, or computers lead- ing up to bedtime or while in bed. Whether they’re watching a movie on Netflix, playing Minecraft, or sending messages on Snapchat, their brains are being stimulated while they are absorbing blue light—two factors that often disrupt sleep patterns.
Not All Screen Time Is Wasted Time
Dr. Lewis says screen time technology may have a positive outcome for children. “We believe that children need social inter-
actions with adults and with other children in small groups to become well-adjusted, well- rounded, and intellectually curious,” explains Dr. Lewis. “There is a general belief that too much screen time doesn’t satisfy these goals, and I don’t know if that’s true for all children. Some are not very social because of temp- erament differences or because of other conditions such as autism. Screen time may be valuable for them. There are no good data on this. Besides, parenting will always be a variable, especially if good parenting is not available.”
Dr. Jimenez notes that children may use tech- nology to speak with far-flung family members or conduct research to complete assignments.
“Whether screen time is detrimental depends on the age of the child and the type of screen
time,” he says. “Infants learn through human contact, interactions, and nurturing. I’m not aware of any strong evidence that meaningful learning happens for infants during screen time, but for preschool children, well-designed content like Sesame Street can help with literacy skill acquisition.”
“Worldwide, children’s IQ scores in the last 50 years have increased a full standard deviation of 10 to 15 points,” Dr. Lewis says. “I suspect this increase may be due to screen time and the information available on televi- sion. For example, a young person in the inner city now has more knowledge at their finger- tips than my grandmother had as a peasant woman in Russia. Technology affords these kids a wonderful opportunity to explore the world.”
Implications for Clinical Practice
The authors of the JAMA Pediatrics study recommend that health care practitioners stress that devices be used in moderation and advocate for more high-touch, low-tech caregiver-child interactions. Parents should be encouraged to set and enforce boundaries regarding media use, taking into account the child’s age.
“Engage in a dialogue with parents about how media is being used, their concerns, the potential advantages and disadvantages of device use, and the quality of the media that’s being used,” advises Dr. Jimenez. “Provide practical guidance about limiting use, especially for the youngest children.” M
14 Robert WoodJohnson | MEDICINE
JOHN EMERSON


































































































   14   15   16   17   18