Watching television in early childhood has been linked to atypical sensory perception
A new study has shown that young children who are exposed to television or video from other media from infancy may later be more likely to have atypical sensory perception, i.e. unusual reactions to sensory stimuli. Such behavior is characteristic of autism spectrum disorders, among others.
Sensory processing or perception refers to how a person perceives and responds to information and stimuli from sensory systems, including visual, auditory, touch, taste, and other bodily receptors. In atypical sensory perception, there is an overreaction, underreaction, or a combination of both in response to sensory stimuli. For example, a child may become disengaged and disinterested in activities, seek out more intense stimuli around him or, conversely, be overwhelmed by loud sounds, bright lights.
Experts in the field of psychiatry from Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) together with colleagues from their university and other research centers in the United States suggested that exposure to digital media like watching TV or videos from other media may contribute to atypical sensory perception in young children. To test the hypothesis, the researchers analyzed data from the National Children's Study (NCS). It took place in 2011-2014 and was devoted to the study of the influence of the environment on the health and development of children.
The sample included 1470 children (half of them boys), included in the NCS program from birth. The selection criterion was the availability of information on the child's viewing of television or video from other media at 12 months, one and a half and two years of age. This was reported by parents or caregivers on the questionnaires.
Children's sensory perception was assessed at about 33 months of age using the Infant/Toddler Sensory Profile (ITSP) test. It gives an idea of how babies perceive and react to what they see, hear, smell and so on. The questionnaire was also filled out by parents or significant others.
The ITSP test included scores on four scales describing behaviors characteristic of children with atypical sensory perception. The first of these is decreased stimulus registration, which is manifested by sedentary behavior, apathy, poor muscle tone, and withdrawn behavior. The second scale - the search for sensations: the child is hyperactive, easily excitable, often looking for a new experience, for which he can lick objects, stick his fingers in the liquid and so on.
The third scale is heightened sensory sensitivity, which is expressed in inattention and high distractibility, hyperactivity. And, finally, avoidance of sensory sensations. Such children are characterized by emotional excitability, intolerance to new sensations, adherence to rituals, desire to remain in a familiar environment.
After comparing the results of all questionnaires, the researchers found that if TV was allowed to watch one-year-old children, it doubled the risk of the above atypical reactions to sensory stimuli at the age of 33 months. At one and a half years of age, each additional hour of TV or video from other media correlated with a subsequent 23% increase in the risk of atypical sensory perception.
Almost the same correlation was found at two years of age: with each extra hour of TV viewing, the probability of scoring high on ITSP scales increased by about 20%.
The correlations found by the scientists remained even after adjusting for associated factors, including premature birth, parental education, ethnicity, and so on.
The authors of the paper, published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, concluded that the study showed a link between early digital media exposure and atypical sensory perception. The new findings suggest that toddlers' TV viewing may increase their risk of developing similar behavioral abnormalities that are common in children with autism.