Download Screen Time

Thank you for creating an app that removes me from the role of constant enforcer in our home. For example, we let our daughter choose the screen time limits with us yesterday, according to the values we have all been trying to adhere to as a family. And last night, she peacefully reached her daily limit. No pleading, no reminding, no guilt.

Love this app! With Screen Time I can control when, how long the tablet is used, and what apps are allowed and not allowed. One of my favourite aspects of this app is that I can create tasks that give them more time when the tasks are completed. It's easy to use, and helps limit their screen time!

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Screen time is the amount of time spent using a device with a screen such as a smartphone, computer, television, or video game console.[1] The concept is under significant research with related concepts in digital media use and mental health. Screen time is correlated with mental and physical harm in child development.[2] The positive or negative health effects of screen time are influenced by levels and content of exposure. To prevent harmful exposure to screen time, some governments have placed regulations on its usage.[3]

The first electronic screen was the cathode ray tube (CRT), which was invented in 1897 and commercialized in 1922.[4] CRT's were the most popular choice for display screens until the rise of liquid crystal displays (LCDs) in the early 2000s.[4] Screens are now an essential part of entertainment, advertising, and information technologies.

Since their popularization in 2007, smartphones have become ubiquitous in daily life. In 2023, 85% of American adults reported owning a smartphone,[5]. An American survey in 2016 found a median of 3.7 minutes per hour of screen time over a 30-day period.[6]

All forms of screens are frequently used by children and teens. Nationally representative data of children and teens in the United States show that the daily average of screen time increases with age.[7][8] TV and video games were once largest contributors to children's screen time, but the past decade has seen a shift towards smart phones and tablets.[9] Specifically, a 2011 nationally representative survey of American parents of children from birth to age 8 suggests that TV accounted for 51% of children's total daily screen time, while mobile devices only accounted for 4%.[10] However, in 2017, TV dropped down to 42% of children's total daily screen time, and mobile media devices jumped up to 35%.[7]

Research has shown that race and socioeconomic class are associated with overall screen time. Younger demographics and individuals who self-identified as Black and "Other" were associated with above average screen use.[6] Additionally, Black and Latino Americans had longer screen times because of less access to desktop computers, which thus leads to more time on phones.[6] In children, the divide is much larger. On average in 2011, White children spent 8.5 hours a day with digital media, and Black and Latino children spent about 13 hours a day on screens.[11] Black and Latino children were also more likely to have TVs in their rooms, which contributed to their increased use of screen time.[11]

The discrepancy in the amount of screen time can also be attributed to a difference in income. In more affluent private schools, there has been a larger push to remove screens from education in order to limit the negative impacts that have been found from screen time.[12] However, in public schools there is more push for the use of technology with some public schools advertising free iPads and laptops to students.[12] Additionally, affluent families are able to afford nannies and extracurriculars that can limit the need for entertainment from screens.[13]

The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 increased screen time as people stayed indoors, adding to concerns about the effects of excessive screen time. Specialists called for limiting screen time and for living a more active lifestyle.[14][15]

More screen-time has been linked with shorter sleep duration, decreased sleep efficiency, and longer sleep onset delay.[6] When using any screen before bedtime, the blue light emitted disrupts the body's natural melatonin hormone production.[16] Melatonin is produced by the brain's pineal gland and controls the body's internal clock.[17] This clock is what is referred to as the body's circadian rhythm and it naturally is responsive to light.[18] Melatonin levels increase as the sun sets and remain at that increased state for the remainder of the night. As the sun rises, melatonin levels start to drop. This hormone reduction is what helps the body's natural rhythm wake up due to the bursts of natural sunlight.[17] The light screens emit are in a similar spectrum of sunlight, but the blue light emission is what human circadian rhythms are most sensitive to. Studies have shown that the blue wavelengths are closely correlated to those from sunlight, which is what helps the body keep in sync with the sunrise and sunset.[19][unreliable source?] Therefore, using any screen prior to bedtime disrupts the body's production of natural bedtime hormones which can trick the brain to believe it is still daytime making it harder to fall asleep.[18]

Increased use of screens in children has also been shown to have an association with adverse effects on the quality of sleep in children.[20] A 2010 review concluded that "the use of electronic media by children and adolescents does have a negative impact on their sleep, although the precise effects and mechanisms remain unclear", with the most consistent results associating excessive media use with shorter sleep duration and delayed bed times.[21] A 2016 meta-analysis found that "Bedtime access and use of media devices was significantly associated with inadequate sleep quantity; poor sleep quality; and excessive daytime sleepiness".[22] This relationship is because much of the time spent on screens for children is at night, which can cause them to go to sleep later in addition to the blue light from the screens making it more difficult to sleep.[20]

Many apps promise to improve sleep by filtering out blue light produced by media devices; there have been no large studies to assess whether such apps work. Some users express dissatisfaction with the resultant orange tint of screens. Some people use blue-blocking glasses, for the purpose of attempting to block out blue light both from electronic media and from other artificial light sources.[26] The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends screen time for children be limited for multiple reasons, among them that "Too much screen time can also harm the amount and quality of sleep".[27]

As well as negatively impacting the adult sleep cycle, using screens can also affect one's physical health. Obesity is a common result of spending great amounts of time on screens like a television, video games, a smartphone, or a computer screen.[28] Studies have shown that if the amount of screen time adolescents spend was limited, the likelihood of obesity can be reduced.[29] However, the associations between discretionary screen time and adverse health outcomes were strongest in those with low grip strength, fitness and physical activity and markedly attenuated in those with the highest levels of grip strength, fitness and physical activity.[30]

It has been reported that screen time negatively affects health in children independently of their physical activity and eating habits.[32] One possible explanation for the link between TV and obesity is the number of commercials for sugary and unhealthy foods.[33] This advertising can have an effect on what gets purchased and consumed in a household. The effect of advertising was demonstrated in a study where children were shown cartoons with and without food commercials. The children who watched the food commercials along with the cartoons ate 45% more unhealthy snacks than the group who watched the cartoons without food ads.[33]

As previously discussed, sleep and screen time are heavily impacted by the other and can lead to affecting one's behavior as well. If someone does not get an adequate amount of sleep, it can affect their behavior and performance for the day.[16] High amounts of screen time also can significantly affect a person's mental health, although some have called these findings into question.[34] With screen usage increasing as time progresses, adults have begun spending more and more time focusing their attention of screens.[35] This time spent sitting and viewing a screen has been linked to mental health effects such as anxiety and depression.[35] Adults who spend six hours or greater using screen time are more likely to suffer from moderate to severe depression.[36] This increased use in screen time has been shown to be directly correlated with an increased chance of depression in adults.[36] With this added risk, lack of sleep plays a major role in a healthy mindset, and without proper rest, mental health can degrade at a higher rate.

An ongoing study reported from the National Institutes of Health concluded that preteens who spent over 7 hours on screens a day and children who spend less than 7 hours a day had noticeably different development of their cerebral cortex. This part of the brain usually thins as people mature but the accelerated decrease could potentially be linked to amounts spent on screens.[39]

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommend for children in age 3 - 5, a screen time not longer than 1 hour per day. According to study published in November 2019, children who have a longer screen time, have slower brain development, what hurt "skills like imagery, mental control and self-regulation". The scientists add that: "This is important because the brain is developing the most rapidly in the first five years," "That's when brains are very plastic and soaking up everything, forming these strong connections that last for life." They also stated that screens changed childhood rapidly.[40] The over exposure also hurts skills of literacy, cognition and language.[41] e24fc04721