TODDLERS have more tantrums the more time they spend on tablets and iPads, a study found. It means the quick fix parenting hack can backfire years later. 1 Parents often use tablets to calm down emotional children, researchers said (stock image) Credit: Alamy Research by the University of Sherbrooke in Quebec, Canada, showed gadgets were linked to an increase of more than a fifth in outbursts of rage if used for more than an hour above average each day.
Study author Professor Caroline Fitzpatrick said: “Child tablet use at age 3.5 years was significantly associated with proneness to anger and frustration one year later.” Mums and dads increasingly use the engrossing screens to keep kids under control on the train or at dinner.
Prof Fitzpatrick found that even if it calms them down in the moment it can damage their long-term emotional control . Read more on screen time CRYPAD REGRET I let son, 3, have 7hrs' screentime a day - I feel guilty but it helps me nap BITTER TABLET Toddlers glued to screens 'miss out on 1,100 critical words a day' Parents should avoid using screens to calm children down and focus on discussion Pedro Mario Pan University of Sherbrooke The study involved 315 parents in Nova Scotia, Canada, between 2020 and 2022. On average their children spent six-and-a-half hours per week using iPads or digital tablets .
It found three-year-olds who spent one hour and 15 minutes more than average on them each day scored 22 per cent higher on a scale of anger and fru.