Study: 38 percent of kids under 2 use smartphones or tablets

Mike Krumboltz
Johnny Oswald, born one week after Superstorm Sandy, took to mobile devices about three months ago. (photo: Carla Oswald)

More than a third of children under the age of 2 use mobile media, according to a recently released report from Common Sense Media. Specifically, the study found that 38 percent of kids under age 2 have used tablets or smartphones.

The nonprofit agency conducted a similar study in 2011. And two years is apparently a long time. Back then, in the halcyon days of the iPhone 4, the number of kids under 2 messing with mobile devices was roughly 10 percent.

When it comes to daily use of technology, the numbers are also rising. "The percent of children who use mobile devices on a daily basis ― at least once a day or more ― has more than doubled, from 8% to 17%," according to the report.

Jim Steyer, founder and CEO of Common Sense Media, spoke to Mashable about the report's findings.

Via Mashable:

"We're seeing a fundamental change in the way kids consume media," Steyer said. "Kids that can't even talk will walk up to a TV screen and try to swipe it like an iPad or an iPhone."

The group's 40-page report is full of statistics, many of which are likely to make you mourn for the changing nature of childhood. In 2011, for example, kids under the age of 8 spent, on average, about five minutes per day on phones or tablets. In 2013, the number tripled to 15 minutes.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that children under the ago of 2 not spend any time in front of media screens, including phones, tablets and television. "A child's brain develops rapidly during these first years, and young children learn best by interacting with people, not screens," the AAP writes.