Published: 12:37 AM, 14 May 2026
Growing Up on Screens: The Hidden Risks for Young Children
Dr. Muhammad Tofazzel Hossain
In many Bangladeshi homes today, a familiar scene unfolds during mealtime: a toddler sits quietly while watching cartoons or rhymes on a smartphone. For busy parents, the device often becomes an easy solution to calm a restless child or keep them occupied. Yet behind this seemingly harmless practice lies a growing concern about how early exposure to smartphones may affect children’s development.
Screen time is the total duration spent using devices with screens, such as smartphones, computers, TVs, and tablets. Excessive, unmanaged screen time is linked to negative health effects, including sleep disruption, reduced physical activity, and mental health issues. Moderation and high-quality content are recommended for a healthy balance. Whether we like it or not, digital devices are everywhere. Some of us can barely put them down, even when we’re with cherished family and friends.
The rapid expansion of digital technology has transformed everyday life in Bangladesh. Smartphones have become essential tools for communication, education, and entertainment. As a result, children are being introduced to digital screens at increasingly younger ages. While technology undoubtedly offers many benefits, its uncontrolled use among very young children raises important questions for parents and society.
Recent research on Bangladeshi families reveals that smartphone exposure among young children is almost universal. Although most children do not own personal devices, nearly all have access to their parents’ smartphones. Many children begin using these devices even before their first birthday, while others are introduced to screens between the ages of one and three.
Parents often provide smartphones to their children for practical reasons. Some use them as educational tools, believing that digital rhymes, alphabet videos, and storytelling apps can support early learning. Others hand over their phones to entertain children, keep them calm in public places, help them finish meals, or occupy them while parents complete household or professional tasks.
While these reasons are understandable, the growing reliance on smartphones during early childhood deserves careful reflection. Childhood is a crucial period for physical, cognitive, and emotional development. Activities such as playing outdoors, interacting with parents and siblings, and exploring the surrounding environment are vital for building language skills, social abilities, and curiosity.
When smartphones replace these experiences, developmental risks may arise. Many parents report noticing behavioural and developmental changes in their children associated with excessive smartphone use. These include reduced concentration, excessive anger, mood swings, sleep disturbances, and delays in speech development.
Such concerns are not unique to Bangladesh. International research consistently shows that excessive screen time can negatively affect children’s language development, attention span, and emotional well-being. Young children learn best through direct human interaction, imaginative play, and hands-on experiences—activities that digital screens cannot fully replace.
At the same time, technology itself is not the enemy. Digital content, when used responsibly and in moderation, can offer educational benefits. Many parents observe that high-quality educational programs can help children learn new words, songs, and concepts. The key issue is not the existence of technology, but how and how much it is used.
This is where parental awareness becomes crucial. International health organizations have developed clear guidelines to help parents manage children’s exposure to digital media. Experts recommend that children under 18 months avoid screen use except for video chatting, while children between two and five years should be limited to about one hour of high-quality screen time per day.
Unfortunately, many parents are unaware of such guidelines. Studies show that a significant majority of Bangladeshi parents are unaware of internationally recommended limits on children’s screen time.
This lack of awareness highlights the urgent need for public discussion about children’s digital habits. Parents often rely on smartphones out of necessity, not neglect. In a busy urban lifestyle, digital devices may appear to be convenient solutions. However, convenience should not come at the expense of children’s healthy development.
Encouragingly, many parents are already trying to manage their children’s smartphone use in practical ways. Some spend more screen-free time with their children, encourage outdoor play, limit device use during meals, and supervise children while they watch digital content. These simple steps can make a significant difference in reducing excessive screen exposure.
Nevertheless, greater awareness and collective effort are needed. Schools, pediatricians, media organizations, and policymakers should work together to educate parents about healthy digital practices for children. Public campaigns, parenting workshops, and school-based awareness programs could help bridge the knowledge gap.
Technology will continue to shape the future of our society, and children must eventually learn to navigate the digital world. But childhood itself should not disappear behind a screen.
Children need stories told by parents, games played in open spaces, and conversations that nurture imagination and curiosity. Smartphones may entertain them for a moment, but real human interaction builds the foundation for lifelong learning and emotional well-being.
If we want to raise a generation that is both digitally literate and emotionally healthy, we must ensure that smartphones remain tools—not substitutes—for childhood.
Dr. Muhammad Tofazzel
Hossain teaches English
literature at Southeast
University and is a researcher specializing in language
and literary studies.
