World Health Organization: So much should infants move

Being a child means not having to play sports. Instead, the world teems with reasons to hop, run, climb, explore. One thing, however, has the power to tie even the most active children to the sofa next to adults: screens.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has for the first time made recommendations on how much time each day infants should be at the age of zero to five years - and how much they should at most spend in front of screens. Thus, the organization closes a gap, so far existed only motion recommendations for children from the age of five years.

"Early childhood is a period in which the body and cognition are developing rapidly - and a time when children's habits are shaping and family life is open to change and adaptation," writes the World Health Organization (WHO). The goal is to reduce the number of overweight children in the long term.

To develop the recommendations, the researchers evaluated scientific studies that had explored the relationship between exercise and health of toddlers. Movement can mean everything from crawling, running and jumping to balancing, climbing, dancing, cycling or jumping rope.

In addition to physical activity, WHO's recommendations also focused on the exact opposite: adequate sleep. This is a prerequisite for a good physical, mental and psychosocial development, it says in the text. For example, studies show that children who sleep too little are more likely to be overweight.

The recommendations in detail:

Children under one year should be within 24 hours:

• Be physically active for at least 30 minutes . Specifically, WHO writes that parents should assist their children with various physical activities several times a day, especially through interactive play in which children move on the floor. Children who are not yet mobile should, according to the WHO, be spread throughout the day while awake periods are at least 30 minutes on their stomach.
• Do not spend a minute sitting in front of a screen. In addition, the experts recommend that the children do not fix more than one hour at a time, for example in prams, chairs or in carrying straps. If the children spend time sitting, the caregivers should look at them with a book or tell a story - according to the WHO, screens are taboo at this age. As a reason, the authors give not only physical benefits but also better mental and social development.
• Sleeping for 14 to 17 hours (zero to three months) or sleeping for 12 to 16 hours (four to eleven months).

Children between the ages of one and two should arrive within 24 hours:

• Be physically active for at least 180 minutes. The types of movement should differ, the World Health Organization recommends. During the day, the children should try hard enough to be out of breath. As always, more active time is better.
• Spend zero minutes sitting in front of a screen until the age of two, then at most one hour. Even at this age, the experts recommend that the children are not fixed in a chair or stroller for more than one hour. Also, the children should not sit for a long time, such as in the car, at a table or in front of a TV.
  For one-year-olds, it is generally not advisable to sit in front of a screen, for example to watch videos or play computers, the recommendations state. For two-year-olds, the screen time per day should not exceed one hour, less is better. Instead, at this age, WHO also recommends spending sitting time with books or stories.

• Sleep 11 to 14 hours , including nap. The experts recommend regular sleep and recovery times.

Children aged three to four should be within 24 hours:

• Be physically active for at least 180 minutes. At least 60 minutes of it, the children should spend throughout the day with moderate to strenuous activities that make them breathless. Examples of this include the WHO fast running, cycling, ball games, swimming or dancing. Again, more active time is even better, and different activities should be combined throughout the day.
• Do not spend more than an hour a day sitting in front of a computer screen. Again, the WHO advises more to watch books or storytelling, as for entertainment by television, computer or mobile phone. In addition, children should not be fixed at this age more than an hour at a time or sit for a long time.
• Sleep for 10 to 13 hours , with option for a nap. The children should, like one- and two-year old regular sleep.

To maximize the health of children, all three issues (physical activity, sitting habits and sleep) should be respected, the WHO writes. The recommendations therefore apply equally to countries with a high, medium or low income. They will need to be updated in ten years - unless more recent studies require an earlier revision.

Whether the recommendations can actually be implemented in everyday life, parents have to try for themselves. Especially small children sometimes spend a lot of time in their prams, highchairs or sit-ons. Because without these aids, parents would hardly be able to transport their offspring from A to B, feed them, or be sure they were safe if they let the child out of their sight. However, the times in a sitting or fixed position could probably be reduced overall.

For five to 17-year-olds, the World Health Organization had already set up exercise recommendations in the past. As a prerequisite for a healthy body, older children should therefore be able to move from moderate to strenuous exercise per day for at least one hour, which may include sport in addition to games and cycling. In addition, children should really promote their body at least three times a week to improve strength and endurance.