The association between screen time and genetic risks for neurodevelopmental disorders in children

• Published in: Psychiatry research Vol. 327; p. 115395
• Main Authors: Takahashi, Nagahide, Tsuchiya, Kenji J., Okumura, Akemi, Harada, Taeko, Iwabuchi, Toshiki, Rahman, Md Shafiur, Kuwabara, Hitoshi, Nomura, Yoko, Nishimura, Tomoko
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ireland Elsevier B.V 01.09.2023
• Subjects: ASD; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity; Autism Spectrum Disorder; Child, Preschool; Female; Genetic Predisposition to Disease; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Neurodevelopmental Disorders - genetics; PRS; Risk Factors; Screen Time; PRS; Screen time; ASD
• ISSN: 0165-1781; 1872-7123
• DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2023.115395

•Longer screen time in infancy has been proposed as a risk for neurodevelopmental disorders.•Using ongoing longitudinal cohort data, the genetic risk of ASD is associated with the length of screen time.•Prolonged screen time may not be a cause of ASD, but may be an early sign of the developing disorder. Whether longer screen time in infancy increases risk of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and ADHD has long been debated, but no causal relationship between the two remains has been established. Using ongoing longitudinal cohort data, we found that in children 24 to 40 months of age, the genetic risk of ASD was associated with longer screen time and that of ADHD with an increase in screen time over time. These data suggest that prolonged screen time may not be a cause of the genetic risk for NDD, but an early sign of NDDs.