{"id":11570,"date":"2021-05-05T15:24:05","date_gmt":"2021-05-05T14:24:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/screentimelabs.com\/?p=11570"},"modified":"2022-03-17T01:31:46","modified_gmt":"2022-03-17T01:31:46","slug":"is-it-ok-to-let-your-toddler-play-video-games-it-depends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/screentimelabs.com\/blog\/is-it-ok-to-let-your-toddler-play-video-games-it-depends\/","title":{"rendered":"Is It OK to Let Your Toddler Play Video Games? [It Depends]"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Overview: Science is increasingly showing that it’s fine if toddlers play video games. However, there are caveats: parents need to play along, and the video games must be age-appropriate.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are Video Games Good For Kids?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The debate about screen time and video games is never-ending, both in culture in general and in families. However, new science is emerging about games and their benefits and drawbacks, and it may take some families by surprise.

First of all, we should note that the main concern for doctors around video games isn’t the effect on young minds, but the effect on young bodies. Doctors want kids, especially young kids, to be more active, something that screen time doesn’t necessarily encourage, and which\u00a0may help with cognitive development<\/a>\u00a0as well. You’ll often find screens lumped in with too much time in strollers as something doctors will recommend against.

That said,\u00a0the most recent study,<\/a>\u00a0from the University of California-Santa Cruz’s Infant Development Lab, found that there was no difference in mental flexibility between kids who played games, ran around, or made art projects. They were all able to sort objects correctly by shape and then color.

The study’s author warned, however, that this was only an exploratory study and wasn’t signing off on the iPad as a digital babysitter. Instead, the findings pointed towards kids and parents playing games together as beneficial, as it helps develop social and cognitive skills and family bonding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Playing Together For A Set Amount Of Time<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

So, screen time with games families can play together make the most sense. And there are\u00a0several age-appropriate options<\/a>, including\u00a0online massively multiplayer games<\/a>, that families can use. Yet there should also be ground rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n