A comprehensive review of global research has found that screen time for babies and toddlers under the age of two is associated with long-term negative effects on health and quality of life, leading researchers to call for urgent policy changes. The study, conducted by the Action on Digital Device Immersive Conditions Team from four UK universities, warns that using smartphones, tablets, and other digital devices during this critical period may cause wide-ranging developmental concerns.
Key Findings on Developmental Risks
The review, described as the most comprehensive yet, highlights that screen time reduces opportunities for physical play, bonding with caregivers, and language development. It may also increase overstimulation, difficulty sleeping, and risks to eye health and childhood obesity. Infants may turn to digital devices for comfort instead of parents, potentially affecting emotional regulation.
Rafe Clayton, senior lecturer at the University of Leeds and co-lead researcher, said parents lack guidance on their own screen use and are “inadvertently teaching children and babies to develop unhealthy habits and relationships with screen devices. This has to change.”
Call for Revised Government Guidance
The study calls on the government to reconsider its recently published guidance for under-fives, which advises avoiding screen time for under-twos except for shared activities encouraging bonding. The researchers argue that this caveat may be misinterpreted as safety or encouragement, leading to increased screen use and potential developmental delays.
“No under-twos should receive regular intentional screen time. Passive exposure is societally unavoidable, so adding deliberate use compounds risk without any meaningful benefit,” the review states. It recommends that any official guidance suggesting shared screen time, screen time for learning, or for children with disabilities should be reconsidered.
Carmen Clayton, professor at Leeds Trinity University and co-lead, said: “The government must consider how to engage with families better about problematic screen use, whilst being sensitive to the fear of judgment that many parents face when opening up about such issues.”
Political and Expert Reactions
Andrea Leadsom, former Conservative minister and founder of the 1,001 Critical Days Foundation, called the review “a wake-up call. The evidence increasingly suggests that screens offer limited benefits for babies and may carry significant risks during the first 1,001 days, the most important period of human development.” She stressed that parents should not be blamed and called for access to Best Start family hubs for trusted advice.
Leadsom also urged technology companies to stop labelling content as suitable for babies when evidence suggests otherwise. The children’s commissioner for England, Rachel de Souza, who helped draft the government guidance, said it was intended to support parental judgment and acknowledged that some shared screen use, like video-calling relatives, is normal.
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “We’re proud of our first-of-its-kind screen time guidance for parents of under-fives, which provides clear, trusted support on an issue we know can be challenging for families.”
