Singapore's New Health Guidelines Ban All ‘Background Screen Time’ For Kids Under 18 Months

It’s always interesting to see how different cultures around the world approach different aspects of child-rearing — and that’s certainly true of how different countries deal with the hot topic of screen time and kids. Last week, for example, Singapore — the Southeast Asian city-state known for its strict rules and regulations — released new guidelines for screen time and children, and some of the new suggestions are strict, but based on science.

The biggest screen time change that Singapore’s Ministry of Health (MOH) now recommends is a complete ban on “background screen time” for kids 18 months or younger — that’s any time that mom, dad, or anyone else in the house is looking at a television, video game, or phone while their kid is around, even if they aren’t actively watching or listening.

Moreover, from 18 months to six years, kids shouldn’t watch screens for reasons other than education, and even then, it should be limited to less than one hour a day. Kids from ages seven to 12 should watch no more than two hours per day.

While the “background screen time” rule sounds strict, it doesn’t come out of thin air. Studies have shown that even having screens on in the background significantly effect children's language usage, executive functioning, and cognition under the age of five.

Also, these guidelines are just that: guidelines. While Singapore’s preschools and elementary school must follow these new rules beginning in February, parents can simply take them into consideration when it comes to what they choose to do in the privacy of their home.

And really, the rest of Singapore’s guidelines are vey similar to those recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP): little to no screen time for kids under two and an hour or less up to the age of five. They also recommend watching show with your kids and generally prioritizing outdoor play and sleep over screens.

Both the AAP and Singapore’s guidelines recommend limiting social media use in teens.

The new guidelines are part of Singapore’s new “Grow Well SG” program, which also focuses on healthy eating, restful sleep, better mental health, and exercise — and of course, using screens in a healthy manner helps all four of those things.