Screen use for children aged 13 to 17
If your child is having a mental health or substance use crisis:
- Call 9-1-1 or take them to the nearest emergency room
- Call 310-6789 for mental health support
- Call 988 for the National suicide crisis line
- Kids Help Phone (1-800-668-6868)
- KUU-US Indigenous Crisis and Support Line: 1-800-588- 8717
Learn how to support screen health for children aged 13 to 17. Explore tips, resources and guidance on managing screen time.
This is an emerging area of research. However, we know that there are both benefits and risks of screen use
Potential benefits include:
- Combatting isolation, learning opportunities, self-expression, and civic engagement
- Social connections, particularly for minority youth populations (e.g. LGBTQIA2S+ community)
Risks to mental/physical health, including:
- Social comparison, displacement of other activities, interference with attention and learning
- Sleep disruption, overuse and problematic use, impacts to vision health, and sexual exploitation and abuse
How much screen time is too much?
The Canadian 24 hour movement guidelines recommend that children spend less than 2 hours per day on recreational screen time (not including time spent on school-work).
However, quality matters as much as quantity. Every child is unique and will experience the benefits and risks of screen use differently.
Family media plan
Parents and guardians are encouraged to create personalized family media plans to address their child’s needs. Setting limits when children are young is easier than cutting back when they’re older.
As part of your family’s media plan, consider using parental controls with the ultimate goal of having your child begin to manage their own limits as they grow older.
Follow the 4 C’s for some evidence-based tips to manage your child’s screen use
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Communicate
Have regular, open conversations with your child about their tech use.
- Be open and curious when talking to your child about tech use. Listen to what they have to say and ask questions like “I know that _____ [app/game] is important to you. I wanted to check in about it; how do you think things are going with your _____ [app/game] use?”
- If your child is using social media, talk about how inappropriate content might be recommended to them or appear in their feeds. Help them recognize false or mean videos, or idealized body images. Let your child know that they can talk to you about anything negative or inappropriate they see or experience online.
- Listen and provide support when kids are distressed due to small social missteps. Have check-ins with your child about how they are feeling navigating their peer relationships online and offline. Do they feel safe? Supported?
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Content
When using screens, prioritize activities that are educational, active, or social over those that are passive or unsocial.
- Read reviews, such as those on Common Sense Media or Plugged-In, to find out what shows, games, and movies are the
right fit for their maturity level. In this age range, you may want to ask your child to be part of this process. - Watch shows and movies together. These can be great conversation starters for topics like substance use, body image, romantic relationships, or other challenging topics.
- Read reviews, such as those on Common Sense Media or Plugged-In, to find out what shows, games, and movies are the
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Calm
Consider: How does your child calm down emotions or go to sleep?
- Because devices and video games are an easy distraction, many teens say they use them to escape negative feelings. Support your child in exploring other healthy coping strategies (like talking to trusted friends/family, mind-body exercises, deep breathing, taking a walk, creating art or music, playing with pets).
- Support your child in putting devices away at least 1 hour before bedtime to help them relax and go to sleep.
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Crowding out
Instead of focusing on ‘reducing screen time, ’ think about what your family wants to ‘add back in.’
- Ask your child: what does media get in the way of?
- Talk with your kids about balancing time on screens so that there is enough time to sleep, read, draw, do homework, etc. Parents can role model putting phones down at bedtime, dinnertime, during homework, or on car rides- whatever makes sense for your family’s media plan.
Help teach your child strategies to manage their phone use
- Turn off notifications and set time limits for certain applications
- Rearrange home screen to have apps on pages 2 or 3, or consider deleting apps from your phone altogether
- Use phone in greyscale mode during the evenings
- Make a family rule to charge your phones outside of bedrooms at night
- Talk with your child about some of the strategies app companies use to keep people on their devices for longer
- Be aware of problematic media use, which occurs when media use is compulsive, interferes with friendships, or leads to frequent arguments
Screen time can impact your child's vision health. Encourage them to blink regularly, keep screens an arm’s length away from their face, and take regular breaks to go outside.
Resources
Download the PDF version and explore translated versions below.
These family-friendly guides were created together by Vancouver Coastal Health and the BC Children’s Hospital - Kelty Mental Health Resource Centre teams to support you and your child.
