Parents should ban mobile phones from the dinner table and their children's bedrooms, the first official guidance on social media and 'screentime' says today.
Dame Sally Davies, the chief medical officer for England, warns that doctors are increasingly worried that the time children spend online is 'detrimental to their physical and mental health'.
In her official advice to parents and carers, she says phones should be left 'outside the bedroom' at night and recommends 'screen-free meal times' so families interact 'face-to-face'.
Dame Sally Davies, England's chief medical officer, warns that doctors are increasingly worried that time children spend online is 'detrimental to their physical and mental health'
Dame Sally's comments come after schoolgirl Molly Russell took her own life aged 14 in 2017 after accessing social media on her mobile phone
As revealed by the Daily Mail last week, Dame Sally also proposes the first time limits for screentime, advising that children should have a break every two hours.
And she stresses that parents themselves need to act responsibly on the internet – and should not publish their children's photographs on social media without their permission.
Dame Sally also takes aim at the web giants, demanding that they fulfil a 'duty of care' towards children and stop making social media platforms deliberately addictive to young users. The intervention will increase the pressure on ministers to act.
The guidance, drawn up with the chief medical officers for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, was commissioned last year by then Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, amid growing concerns about the impact of technology on children's health.
When Matt Hancock succeeded him, he asked Dame Sally to fast track her findings and come up with guidance that could become a 'norm in society'.
The scale of the problem was revealed in a report by watchdog Ofcom last week, which showed that pre-school children were spending four hours and 16 minutes a day glued to a screen.
Seven out of ten children aged 12 to 15 are allowed to take their smartphones to bed, and a fifth of children aged eight to 12 have signed up to social media. Cyberbullying, online predators, harassment and disturbing content have all been identified as dangers for children online, with experts warning of the impact on mental health – especially when combined with poor sleep and a lack of exercise.
Dame Sally said: 'Time spent online can be of great benefit to children and young people, providing opportunities for learning and skills development, as well as allowing young people to find support and information.
'But we need to take a precautionary approach and our advice will support children to reap these benefits and protect them from harm.'
Experts last night welcomed the guidance as simple, straightforward and achievable.
Seven out of ten children aged 12 to 15 are allowed to take their smartphones to bed, and a fifth of children aged eight to 12 have signed up to social media. Stock picture shows a boy using a smartphone
Dr Ben Carter, a scientist at King's College London, whose research has shown that smartphones can play havoc with a child's sleep, said banning phones from the bedroom is a very good idea. 'This is a really simple message and is very understandable,' he said.
Dame Sally's report also calls on the tech giants to crack down on vile content on their platforms, so that they do not 'normalise' self-harm and bullying.
'Technology is an unavoidable aspect of modern life and technology companies have a duty of care,' she said last night.
Professor Stephen Powis, NHS national medical director, went further and repeated calls for firms to pay a 'social media levy' for the harm they do. He highlighted the 'emerging links between some online activities and mental health pressures'.
