In an earlier U.S. study, he found that children who watched a lot of TV or played a lot of video games had slightly more problems concentrating on school work. However, that study couldn’t prove that screen time was at the root of the narrowing attention span, either.

The American Academy of Pediatrics, which published the new study in its journal Pediatrics, recommends limiting children’s time in front of computers or TVs to 2 hours daily.

“One thing we have to bear in mind is that children playing video games for 2 to 3 hours a day is normal. It’s displaced activities like watching TV,” Griffiths said.

Still, he said a small minority of kids probably do suffer from true video game addiction, just as some people are pathological gamblers.

In general, Griffith advises that parents try to give their kids educational games instead of violent ones, encourage playing in groups, and follow the directions from the manufacturers, such as sitting at least two feet from the screen and not playing when feeling tired.

“I have three kids, all of who are the archetypal ‘screenagers’ who spend a lot of time a day interacting with technology” said Griffiths. “Basically, even when playing a couple of hours most days it is not impinging negatively on their lives.”

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By Frederik Joelving

NEW YORK