More screen time leads to speech delays in toddlers: PGI study

Experts emphasize that passive viewing—screens watched without parental interaction—is more harmful than co-viewing, where parents help interpret content. They stress a 'serve-and-return' interaction during a child’s early years, noting that parental involvement supports cognitive development better than screens.

Early screen exposure before 18 months was independently associated with nearly eight-fold higher chances of abnormal personal-social development, and more than twice the odds of abnormal gross motor development.

The study found average first exposure to screens at around 17.5 months, with 68% of children exposed before 18 months. On weekdays, 28.6% of children were in front of screens for more than an hour, rising to 36% on weekends.

The study provides region-specific evidence for India and references the Indian Academy of Paediatrics screen-time guidelines, which advise no screen exposure before age two (except for occasional video calls) and no more than one hour daily for ages two to five.

The PGIMER study found that toddlers who are exposed to more than one hour of daily screen time are more likely to show poor communication skills and speech delays.