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Around the world, adolescents are more digitally connected than ever, and access to digital devices has become a lightning rod of conflict in many homes. To date, research on best practices in digital parenting has been hampered by the absence of a well validated measure that reflects the mutli-faceted realities of parenting in the contemporary digital age.
Parents and caregivers often turn to the internet for information about their child's health and development. Research investigating content related to parenting on the world's most popular social media platform, TikTok, has not been conducted.
Young children are increasingly exposed to evolving screen technology. International guidelines recommend no screen use for children under the age of 2 years, due to the potential for detrimental effects on behaviour and development. However, evidence for these guidelines is limited by inadequate consideration of device-specific effects (TV and mobile phone/tablet computer), maternal screen use, confounders such as maternal mental health and importance of effect sizes.
The prevalence estimates of physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep (collectively known as movement behaviors) in 3- and 4-year-old children worldwide remains uncertain.
With an increasing number of grandparents providing care to their grandchildren, calls have been made for these caregivers to be considered important stakeholders in encouraging children's engagement in health-promoting behaviors, such as physical activity.
Growing up in a language-rich home environment is important for children's language development in the early years. The concept of "technoference" (technology-based interference) suggests that screen time may be interfering with opportunities for talk and interactions between parent and child; however, limited longitudinal evidence exists exploring this association.
Behavioural sleep problems are common in children. The challenges with establishing and maintaining good sleep hygiene may prove challenging to overcome based on environmental issues such as the liberal availability of electronic media from a young age, permissive parenting, difficult family dynamics and limited parental/carer understanding of a child's sleep needs as they progress through childhood and adolescence.
Energy drinks (EDs) are not recommended for minors' consumption due to a myriad of health risks, but marketing initiatives persist. This study explored the promotion of EDs on TikTok, a platform frequented by children and adolescents.
The potential for human-computer interaction to have a substantial impact on adults is well documented. However, its potential importance prior to birth has rarely been reported. Parental use of smartphones and tablet computers could influence the relationship between parent and baby during pregnancy (prenatal attachment) and thus child development.
Screen time guidelines recommend no screens under two years due to the potential negative impacts on development. While current reports suggest many children exceed this, research relies on parent reports of their children's screen exposure. We objectively assess screen exposure during the first two years and how it differs by maternal education and gender.