Screens in childhood: Effects on sleep, learning and attention. Principles for healthy uses

Abstract

The article focuses on the most important topics within the issue of healthy usage of technology in children: 1. blue light and its impact on childhood sleep, 2. the use of screens to accelerate cognitive development, and 3. the early screen exposure and later development of ADD/ADHD. With regard to the critical milestones of cognitive development, we discuss the most risky group, i.e. children aged 0 to 6 years. The text summarizes the main findings from current foreign and domestic research, and is accompanied by the basic guidelines of technology use in toddlers and preschool children.