Is it too late to stop my 8 month infant to stop watching TV
It all started when she was only a few month old: my in-laws always put her in front of the TV and sometimes for a long period of time.
Today I read how bad it is for the child's brain and for the development of the language. I am really scared if she started having difficulties.
Especially that she didn't start making the "bye" gesture or "come" gesture. What should I do?
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As the previous answer says, you don't have to panic. Most of what you've read about the big dangers of watching TV is very likely to be BS (see Why Most Published Research Findings Are False) If TV was that bad for children's language skills, we'd see a lot of muteness around
But of course I understand that you don't want your child to spend too much time in front of the TV and focus more on social interaction instead. That's great and, since you are the parent, you can decide how much time to dedicate to TV (or Youtube, or whatever) You don't have to be too drastic, either.
In short, don't panic. The fact that you are having this concern proves that you are already better than the average parent. Keep doing what you do and get in charge of your child's personal development and education.
But TV and media can also have a good impact on her if you use those ressources wisely at, for instance, learning a second language or showing stories that fit moral values you want to teach her
It is never too late to stop watching TV, however you shouldn't panic.
Various studies do show that TV is not a good replacement for real interaction, but depending on what was shown, there will still have been stimulation. There are many programmes specifically designed to help babies.
In any case, however, what you can do now is spend time talking and playing with your daughter. Interact with her to give her the input and feedback a TV doesn't give.
If you are worried at all, your pediatrician should check how your daughter is doing against learning milestones. We have a fair bit of info here on the site on expected milestones, and how the timelines are very broad - some children get to some of them faster than others.
Please read the following articles - all agree that for under-2's, television is not recommended, and even over that age, while there is some good content, it doesn't match live interaction for your child's development.
www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/infant-and-toddler-health/expert-answers/baby-einstein/faq-20058099 www.healthychildren.org/English/family-life/Media/Pages/Why-to-Avoid-TV-Before-Age-2.aspx www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/03/12/why-watching-tv-can-actually-be-good-for-toddlers www.cnbc.com/2015/05/15/babyfirst-tv-offers-round-the-clock-programming.html
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