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Physical Activity and Screen Time Pattern among Infants, Toddlers, and Preschool Children: A descriptive Study from

Bipul K Das1, Sreejana Sharma1, Murchana Khound1

  • 1Department of Pediatrics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Guwahati, Assam, India.

Indian Journal of Community Medicine : Official Publication of Indian Association of Preventive & Social Medicine
|December 26, 2025
PubMed

Insights

Excessive screen time and inadequate physical activity are common in young children in Northeast India. The study highlights the need to balance screen time with physical activity for healthy child development.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Public Health
  • Child Development

Background:

  • Excessive screen time negatively impacts children's physical activity, growth, and psychological development.
  • It contributes to sedentary lifestyles, noncommunicable disease risk, and poor dietary habits.
  • Understanding these patterns in early childhood is crucial for intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To describe patterns of physical activity, restraint time, sleep time, and screen time in children aged 0-5 years.
  • To compare these patterns with World Health Organization recommendations.
  • To identify associations between screen time and dietary intake or anthropometric variables.

Main Methods:

  • A cross-sectional study involving 102 children (infants, toddlers, preschool children).
  • Data collected on daily screen time, physical activity, restraint time, sleep, and anthropometric measurements.
  • Statistical analysis using Chi-square and Student's t-tests.

Main Results:

  • Inadequate physical activity (12.7%), restraint time (5.9%), and sleep (18.6%) were observed.
  • Excessive screen time was prevalent in 57.8% of children across all age groups.
  • Screen time significantly correlated with junk food consumption and caloric intake, but not anthropometric variables.

Conclusions:

  • Inadequate physical activity and excessive screen time are widespread issues among young children in Northeast India.
  • Findings underscore the critical need to balance screen time with physical activity for optimal child well-being and development.
  • Interventions promoting healthy habits are essential for this age group.

Keywords:
Excessive screen timejunk foodphysical activityrestraint timesleep timeunder-five children

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