Finding a healthy screen balance

How much screen time is too much? It is a question most parents grapple with, and one that now sits at the centre of a growing international conversation about children’s health and development.

Around the world, policymakers are beginning to act. In Australia, the government has recently moved to ban social media access for children under 16, reflecting rising concern about the impact of online platforms on young people’s wellbeing. Closer to home, the UK Department for Education has also been encouraging schools to take a firmer approach to mobile phone use during the school day and has emphasised the importance of limiting unnecessary screen exposure for children, both in classrooms and at home.

Against this backdrop of growing public debate, we were delighted to welcome Dr Aric Sigman - psychologist, author and one of the UK’s leading voices on children’s health and screen use - back to St Andrew’s for a series of talks with pupils, parents and staff.

Dr Sigman is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology and the Royal Society of Medicine, an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society and a Chartered Scientist. He has published widely in peer-reviewed medical journals, including a leading article on screen time in the Archives of Disease in Childhood published by the British Medical Association, and has twice addressed the European Parliament Working Group on the Quality of Childhood in the EU.

He lectures at medical schools and to NHS doctors, and regularly visits schools to deliver PSHE talks that draw on the latest research. His book Getting Physical won the Information Book Award from the Times Educational Supplement.

Talking to pupils: not “just say no”

Dr Sigman spoke separately to Years 3 to 6 and Years 7 and 8, tailoring his message carefully for each group. Refreshingly direct, he was clear from the outset that he is not anti-screen or anti-technology. Rather, he explained that the medical evidence around excessive recreational screen use is growing and deserves serious attention.

To help pupils understand the idea of balance, he compared screen use to eating chocolate: one small bar a day, enjoyed alongside a healthy lifestyle, is very different from ten bars a day. Doctors, he explained, increasingly think about screen time in a similar way - moderate use is rarely a concern, but very high “doses” can be.

As Dr Sigman put it:

"You should control your devices. They should not control you. They should be tools that help your life, not tools that harm your health."

He shared some striking statistics, including that the average American teenager spends around seven hours a day on recreational screen use  - not homework, but gaming, social media, YouTube and television. Across a lifetime, that level of use could add up to roughly twenty full years of 24-hour days spent on screens purely for entertainment.  He asked pupils to imagine looking back on that at the age of 85, and whether they would feel satisfied with how their time had been spent.

What the research says

Dr Sigman explored several areas where medical studies are increasingly raising concerns.

Eyesight: Children’s eyes are still developing, and doctors are now seeing them change shape in larger numbers than before - becoming more oval than round, a change linked with myopia (short-sightedness). One factor appears to be spending long periods focusing on close-up screens and less time looking at middle and far distances. He introduced pupils to the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes, look away from a screen for 20 seconds at something around 20 feet away.

Physical health: Many studies link high screen time with higher body fat in children and teenagers. One reason is that screens can blunt the body’s signals for fullness, meaning children sometimes eat more without noticing. Research has also found that children often move far less when using screens - sometimes becoming almost motionless for extended periods. Over months and years, this can affect fitness, grip strength and stamina.

Sleep: Screens in the bedroom are strongly associated with poorer sleep, and sleep plays a crucial role in helping the brain consolidate learning and memory. Studies consistently show that sleep quality is a meaningful predictor of academic performance.

Academic performance: Research also suggests that heavy use of gaming, social media and short-form video platforms is linked with lower academic outcomes. Dr Sigman highlighted studies showing that even having a phone on the desk - switched off - can reduce thinking performance, because part of the brain remains distracted by its presence.

Social media and brain development: Long-term studies tracking children over several years have found that very frequent checking of messages can be associated with changes in brain areas linked to social sensitivity. Health authorities have also warned that heavy social media use is connected with higher levels of anxiety and lower wellbeing in some groups. These concerns are part of the reason governments internationally are now debating stronger protections for young people online.

A note on AI

Dr Sigman also touched on artificial intelligence - an increasingly important topic for schools and families.  He acknowledged that AI can have genuinely useful applications, such as language practice or helping explain difficult concepts. However, he cautioned against using AI tools to complete homework tasks. The effort involved in working through problems independently, he explained, is precisely what builds understanding and skill.

He also noted growing concern among psychologists about children forming emotional attachments to AI companions, and observed that much of the current guidance around AI use comes from technology companies rather than child-health professionals - echoing the early years of social media.

Supporting families at home

The parent session gave families the opportunity to explore the research in greater depth and discuss practical strategies for home life.  Dr Sigman pointed to health authorities’ guidance suggesting around two hours of recreational screen time per day - outside schoolwork - as a reasonable framework.

He also suggested several practical steps:

• Keeping mealtimes screen-free

• Removing devices from bedrooms at night

• Using a separate alarm clock instead of a phone

• Turning off non-essential notifications

• Prioritising face-to-face conversation and outdoor activity

When asked what age he would recommend giving a child a smartphone, Dr Sigman said that, based on the current medical evidence, around 16 would be his preference.

A balanced approach

Will Carter, our Deputy Head Pupil Wellbeing (maternity cover), reflected:

"Dr Sigman struck exactly the right tone with our pupils — informed, honest and measured. The conversations it has sparked, in classrooms and at home, have been really valuable."

At St Andrew’s, pupil wellbeing sits at the heart of everything we do. Our programme of visiting speakers is part of our commitment to helping children - and their families - navigate a world where technology is evolving rapidly. The goal is to ensure screens remain a useful tool rather than a dominant force - supporting learning, creativity and connection without crowding out sleep, movement, conversation and the many experiences that childhood should contain.