Do you allow your toddler screen time?

I've read so many articles telling me that the less screen time for children the better, but it can be hard. When you're dealing with a toddler going through the terrible twos it's sometimes nice to be able to distract them with cartoons or a game so you can have a little break. Recently the World Health Organisation released information regarding small children and screen time in which they said that toddler should have absolutely no screen time. The World Health Organisation put out the recommendation that children under the age of five should be limited to one hour of screen time per day while toddlers should have none whatsoever. The organisation feels that too much screen time is leading to childhood obesity and bad mental health. They have suggested that children engage in activities such as puzzles or crafts instead. While I encourage both of my children to spend as much time playing outdoors or reading as possible, in this age of technology it's not always easy to completely forgo screens. While the World Health Organisation believes that too much screen time stunts brain development, experts in the UK aren't convinced. They feel sceptical of the results and the research that led to it. Speaking to the Daily Mail Dr Tim Smith said;

"In recent months UK parents and early-years practitioners have been bombarded with conflicting recommendations and guidelines about how and whether they should be managing their children's screen time and sedentary behaviour, e.g. from the RCPCH and Chief Medical Officers. The release of new WHO guidelines does not help to clarify the situation."

Regardless of whether or not screen time does negatively affect cognitive development, it is definitely better if our children spend less time watching YouTube and more time engaging in other activities for their social, physical and mental well-being.