4 Nov 2025

New concerns around new mums and mobile phone use

From Afternoons, 1:15 pm on 4 November 2025
Dr Miriam McCaleb

Dr Miriam McCaleb Photo: Alisa Dowling

The conversation around phone screen time - and how much is too much - usually centres around children and teens.

But new research has highlighted the impact of phone use by another group - new mums.

Any tired parent will tell you that screen time can be a welcome source of distraction, but it turns out it can also interfere with parent/child bonding and a baby’s development.  

Dr Miriam McCaleb from the University of Canterbury is lead researcher on the study, she talks to Jesse.

A photo of a baby having a tantrum and fighting with his mother for a smart phone sitting on a couch in the living room at home

Photo: 123rf