Background Screen use is increasing rapidly among preschool children and excess screen use in these children has been associated with cognitive side effects and speech delay. We undertook this study to estimate the risk associated with screen time in children, parental supervision, and parent-reported cognitive development among preschool children aged 2–5 years. Methods A cross-sectional study was done between July 2019 and January 2020 involving parents of all students aged 2–5 years, attending 2 kindergarten schools in Thiruvalla using a self-administered questionnaire. Parents also used the Werner David Development pictorial scale (WDDPS), a screening tool to report cognitive development. The schools were sampled based on convenience. Results Of the 189 children included in the study, 89.4% had excess screen use (> 1 h per day) and the average use was 2.14 h. 45.0% of parents supervised screen use inconsistently (self-reported). Meal-time screen use (OR 3.8, 95% CI 1.3–10.8), receiving screen on demand (OR 3.7, 95% CI 1.2–11.3), and using devices other than computers (OR 6.5, 95% CI 1.6–26.8) were significantly associated with excess screen use in pre-school children. Similarly, those children with inconsistently supervised screen time were significantly more likely to have suspected deficits in attention (OR 3.2, 95% CI 1.3–8.2), intelligence (OR 4.1, 95% CI 1.3–13.3), and social skills (OR 15.3, 95% CI 1.9–121.2), compared to children whose screen use was consistently supervised. Conclusion Screen time in the majority of preschool children is above the recommended limits, and inconsistent supervision by parents was seen in almost half of the study participants. Inconsistently supervised screen time is associated with suspected cognitive delays in children.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

BACKGROUND: Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) is the first fundamental right of the child. Globally less than half of the infants of the world are optimally breastfed. Suboptimal breastfeeding can lead to increased respiratory and gastrointestinal infections. This study was undertaken to assess the determinants and effects of EBF among infants at a tertiary care hospital in south India. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was done among infants at the pediatric unit of Believer’s Church Medical College Hospital, from October 2019 to April 2020, using a structured pretested questionnaire. RESULTS: 257 infants were included in the final analysis. 70.4% of babies were exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months, while 80.9% were breastfed within the first hour after birth. Among determinants of exclusive breastfeeding, unemployed mothers and mother’s without a professional qualification were more likely to continue exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months (OR 2.8 95% CI (1.6 – 4.9). and 2.7 95% CI (1.5 – 4.9). respectively). Antenatal counselling appeared to have some beneficial effect but the result was not statistically significant. We did not find significant increase in the number of infections or hospitalizations for respiratory or gastrointestinal infections among the formula fed babies. However, significantly lower number of breastfed babies had constipation (OR 0.4, 95% CI 0.2 – 0.9) when compared to formula fed babies. CONCLUSION: Significantly higher percentage of infants presenting to our hospital have been exclusively breastfed as compared to the state average. The major determinant of EBF was maternal education and employment and the main effect of EBF was a protection against constipation.