Health

Honest summaries of what the research says about screens and kids' bodies, brains, and mental health.

Screen Time and Brain DevelopmentWhat does the actual neuroscience say about screen time and developing brains? The picture is more nuanced than either s... Screen Time and Mental Health in KidsThe link between heavy screen use and rising kid mental health problems is one of the most studied questions of the deca... Screen Time and Social SkillsKids who spend more time on screens spend less time learning the millisecond-level social skills that only happen face t... Screen Time and Language Development in ToddlersFor kids under 3, screen time is most strongly linked to language delay. The mechanism is simple: every minute on a scre... Screen Time and Physical ActivityScreen time and physical activity are zero-sum in most kids' lives. The kid getting 5 hours of screens is, almost by def... Screen Time and Childhood ObesityThe link between screens and weight gain in kids is one of the most consistent findings in the research. Multiple mechan... Screen Time and Autism: What's the Connection?There is no evidence that screens cause autism. There is strong evidence that excessive screen time worsens regulation i... Screen Time and ADHD in KidsScreens don't cause ADHD, but they do interact with ADHD in specific ways: heavier impact on attention, harder transitio...