A Bubble Guppies character pole dances in a bar. The next scene displays boys panting while one male character’s nose bleeds. Source: YouTube

As parents increasingly question the effects technology has on their children's health and well-being, many are alarmed by the slew of reports coming out about malicious content on YouTube targeting children as young as two years old. In recent months parents and psychotherapists have reported that perpetrators have manipulated content from well-known beloved children's franchises, such as Entertainment One's Peppa Pig, Nickelodeon's PAW Patrol and Disney's Frozen and Mickey Mouse, and inserted inappropriate and disturbing content involving popular characters. More from Modern Medicine:

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Scientists narrow down the startling risk factors that can cause autism According to medical experts, this content has an adverse effect on the developing brain. "Children who repeatedly experience stressful and/or fearful emotions may underdevelop parts of their brain's prefrontal cortex and frontal lobe, the parts of the brain responsible for executive functions, like making conscious choices and planning ahead, said Donna Volpitta, Ed.D., founder of The Center for Resilient Leadership." What's worse, some of this content is filtering down into YouTube Kids, an app launched by Google in 2015 that has 11 million viewers and is supposed to contain only child-friendly content. These offending videos are only a fraction of YouTube's kid-friendly universe, yet they are another example of the potential for abuse on digital platforms that rely on algorithms to police content — and the latest in a string of reports that reveal the dark side of technology on young minds.

A child gets chased around a playground by giant spiders while the “Itsy Bitsy Spider” nursery rhyme song plays. Source: YouTube

While most of the digital perpetrators are unknown, what is certain is that their intent to do harm is deliberate, as it is quite easy for a child to stumble upon these video clips. For example, just five clicks into the popular "Dave and Ava — Nursery Rhymes and Baby Songs" in YouTube's "Up Next" autofeed suggestions pulls up a scary video featuring Nickelodeon's PAW Patrol characters. (PAW Patrol is a much-loved cartoon for children ages 2 to 5 about heroic dogs with human jobs.) The video, like most in this category, appears fairly innocuous in the first few minutes but becomes progressively darker with time.

A ghost ties up PAW Patrol’s Marshal character with her hair as he cries “help me” over and over. The next scene displays Marshal having a nightmare in bed, screaming those same words. Source: YouTube

Watching "fear-inducing videos cause the brain to receive a small amount of dopamine," said Dr. Volpitta. Dopamine is produced in the body to promote reinforcement — it acts as a reward and creates a desire to do something over and over. Signs your child is experiencing emotional stress Your child is more prone to mood swings. Your child withdraws from activities. Your child routinely expresses worries. Your child is complaining, crying, or displaying fearful reactions. Your child is clinging to a parent or teacher. Your child is sleeping too much or too little. Your child is eating too much or too little. Source: American Psychological Association Natasha Daniels, LCSW, child psychotherapist in Chandler, Arizona, agrees. She is the founder of AnxiousToddlers.com, an educational website for parents. "YouTube is an ongoing conversation in my therapy practice, which indicates there's a problem," she said. Over the last five years, she said she has seen a rise in cases of children suffering from anxiety triggered by videos they have watched on YouTube. These children exhibit loss of appetite, sleeplessness, crying fits and fear. Daniels said parents should heed YouTube's terms of service, which states, "The Service is not intended for children under 13." She continues, "I'm seeing this impacting kids between the ages of six to 12, but it's the younger ones that are really concerning." Even more disturbing than the videos that cause stressful emotions are the ones containing sexually explicit content that target children. "There have been times when a child is brought to my office between [the ages of] eight and 10 and they're found doing sexual things: oral sex, kissing and getting naked and acting out sexual poses. This usually indicates some sort of sexual abuse. In the past, whenever I did some investigating, I would find a child who has been molested himself or that an adult has been grooming the child for abuse. However, in the last five years, when I follow the trail all the way back, it's YouTube and that's where it ends," said Daniels. Recommendations for parents to restrict children's media use Children under 18 months should avoid screen-based media with video-chatting being an exception. Children 18 months to 24 months should only watch with their parents, with their parents choosing high-quality content.



Children two to five should only watch high-quality video of their parent's choosing for one hour per day. Children aged six or older should receive consistent limits on media use, with priority given to sleep and activities rather than media consumption. Source: American Academy of Pediatrics Chamath Palihapitiya, one of Facebook's original executives, has been very vocal about how he believes technology is devolving society. "[My children get] no screen time whatsoever," he said during a recent interview on CNBC's Squawk Box. Microsoft's Bill Gates and Apple's Steve Jobs also famously went against their children's wishes by raising them with little to no screen time.

In place of watching YouTube or using devices, Dr. Volpitta recommends that children spend more time creating and exploring.

"When a child is outside playing, he or she is learning how to fail, persist, collaborate, strategize, and problem-solve. The brain of a child who successfully climbs their bike up a hill will be rewarded with a larger dose of dopamine and serotonin [a feel-good chemical] than one who sits in front of a screen. This helps a child learn how to prepare and work towards long-term goals," she said. Facebook's Palihapitiya shares the same outlook, telling his kids, "You go figure it out, go outside, skin your knee, fall on the ground, play a sport, lose at something, and then come back to me and we'll talk about it."

Tech giants take an active role