Children
who spend more than 30 minutes on their iPads in one sitting could be
sowing the seeds for chronic neck and back pain later in life, experts
have warned.
Research
suggests that hunching over electronic devices at a young age can
entrench bad habits which will cause musculoskeletal issues in
adulthood.
Stephanie
Cassidy, a Melbourne-based ergonomist and occupational therapist, said
children should only spend a maximum of half an hour in a fixed position
before moving again.
Despite
this, researchers at Curtin University, Australia, have found many
families are allowing children to spend an hour or more on their tablet
devices.
More
than 40 per cent of parents surveyed in the study admitted they used
electronic devices to keep their children 'calm and happy' for
substantial periods.
Post-doctoral
research fellow Pieter Coenen will present the preliminary results at
the Inter-national Ergonomics Association congress in Melbourne next
month.
He said the research hoped to uncover an appropriate level of device use for children younger than five.
He added: 'The behaviors they develop early in life can cause musculoskeletal issues later on in life.'
Guidelines
in some countries advise a maximum one hour of screen time (including
television) for children between two and five, with no electronic device
use for children younger than two.
Yet
the Curtin University study of 159 children aged five and younger,
including 30 younger than two, found one-quarter watched TV for more
than an hour a day during the week, rising to nearly half on weekends.
Sixty
per cent spent up to an hour using tablets or mobile phones during the
week, with nearly 10 per cent spending more than an hour a day on their
tablets during the weekends.
Ms
Cassidy said she limits her own daughter's use of her iPad, iPod and
laptop while encouraging good posture and regular activity, mindful of
research showing the dangers of prolonged sitting.
She said: 'If she is using them in bed or on the couch, I'm often saying: 'Use cushions to support yourself.'
'Everything
points towards a maximum of 30 minutes (usage), then we should be
moving again ... if kids start reporting symptoms of neck and back pain,
these symptoms are often a sign that your body is not coping with what
you're putting it through.'
It
comes after research by the charity Tablets for Schools found almost 70
per cent of primary and secondary schools in the UK now use tablet
computers.
But the study also said there is no clear evidence of academic improvement for pupils using tablet devices.
A
separate study from the National Literacy Trust found a quarter of
secondary pupils described themselves as internet 'addicts'.
About two-thirds took a computer device or smartphone to bed with them, used for social media or watching videos.
Findings earlier last year from Ofcom showed about 70 per cent of five to 15-year-olds had access to a tablet at home.
Last
month, clinical psychologist Linda Blair warned children should not be
allowed to use phones and iPads before school because it can damage
their concentration in class.
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