The research took into account socioeconomic factors to isolate the smartphone effect and found that children with these phones have an increased risk of depression, obesity and lack of sleep.
A new paper published in Pediatrics suggests that giving children a smartphone at age 12 may be associated with several negative health outcomes, including higher rates of depression, obesity and insufficient sleep. The findings add to a growing body of research examining how early exposure to smartphones can shape children’s development in a world where digital devices are virtually unavoidable.
The study analyzed data from 10,588 participants of an ongoing project in the US that tracks brain development in adolescence and compared the health of 12-year-olds who owned smartphones with that of children who did not, as well as examining how outcomes changed for children who received a phone between the ages of 12 and 13. The researchers controlled for demographic and socioeconomic factors to isolate the potential influence of device ownership.
According to the conclusions, 6.5% of 12 year olds with smartphones had been diagnosed with depression at some point in their lives, compared to approximately 4.5% of those without phones. Although the difference appears modest, researchers say it is statistically significant, says .
Obesity rates showed an even greater disparity: around 18% of smartphone users at age 12 they were classified as obese, compared to 12% of their peers without braces. Sleep also showed significant differences, with 47% of 12-year-old children with cell phones sleeping less than nine hours a night, compared to 31% of those who did not use cell phones.
The pattern persisted as the children grew older. Those who obtained a smartphone at age 13 were more likely to report mental health difficulties and inadequate sleep compared to adolescents who remained without a cell phone. However, the obesity risk did not change significantly over a one-year period, suggesting a more complex relationship between cell phones and weight.
Lead author Ran Barzilay, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, cautioned that smartphones are not inherently harmful and can offer significant benefits. “For many teens, smartphones can play a constructive role, strengthening social bonds, supporting learning and providing access to information and resources that promote personal growth,” he said.
Many families also consider cell phones to be essential security tools. Still, the researchers emphasize that the associations are strong enough to justify careful decision making.
Future research will examine how screen timethe types of applications and prolonged cell phone use influence the well-being of adolescents and what measures can help mitigate the risks.
