Toddlers should not be allowed to watch any television or screens and older children’s screen time should be limited, Sweden has told parents.
Children under the age of two should be kept away from digital media and television completely, the country’s Public Health Agency said.
Kids between the ages of two and five should be limited to a maximum of one hour of screen time a day, it said in new recommendations, while those aged six to 12 should spend no more than an hour or two a day in front of a screen.
‘For too long, smartphones and other screens have been allowed to enter every aspect of our children’s lives,’ Public Health Minister Jakob Forssmed said.
It comes after it was revealed that children who use their phones or watch television at mealtimes are much more likely to be overweight, a study has found.
The agency also claimed teenagers aged 13 to 18 should be limited to two to three hours per day.
The minister said that Swedish teens aged 13 to 16 spend six and a half hours a day on average in front of their screens, outside of school hours.
