Massachusetts Mom Asks ‘Does Your Child Watch ‘Cocomelon’?’ Read on

Screen time is something we all struggle with, but imagine what parent's of young children go through in picking the right shows, let alone allowing any screen time for the very young.

So, when a Massachusetts mother asked me what I thought of the TikTok video about this and other children's shows, I decided to dig a little deeper.

According to Parents.com, the American Academy of Pediatrics opposes any screen time for children 18 months and younger, and no more than one hour of screen time per day for children two years old and older.

A TikTok influencer has shared a series of videos, and he clearly says it's quantitative-based, not qualitative. But it has parents of young kids thinking about one very fast-paced, very popular show which mesmerizes children.

Cocomelon was introduced online in 2005 to help teach basic concepts to children.  However, it has turned into a debate among the medical and behavioral research communities, as parents claim the program delays speech and causes ADHD.

Parents.com also quotes pediatric speech-language pathologist Kassie Hanson, who says:

There is clear research that shows TV for children under 2 can have a negative impact on attention, cognition, and communication. Children under 2 need interaction with people, not screens.

Back to the TikTok @circusbrain posts about Cocomelon.  The influencer is not saying it's bad, but shows that the stimulation, constant camera zooming and panning, or milliseconds between scenes is very jarring to a young brain in comparison with My Little Pony, or even Sesame Street.

Here's the video, so see for yourself.  This clip has 4.2 million views.

Another health paper, bfohealth.com, states Cocomelon generates three billion views per month. Claire E. Cameron, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Learning and Instruction at the University at Buffalo Graduate School of Education, confirmed that “Rapid pacing and production features draw young children’s attention through sensory systems, not higher order brain functions like comprehension.”

So, as parents complain about their kids having cognitive issues such as ADHD, wild tantrums, and speech delay, there are no specific studies which have been conducted specifically about Cocomelon, but plenty of research shows the wrong type of screen time (and too much of it) is a detriment to the little ones, as abcnews.go.com outlines.