''Should my 5-year-old start a YouTube channel? UAE mums reveal risks and rewards of early fame

It’s 2025, and terms like kidfluencers and ‘Insta-kids’ are firmly part of our daily lexicon. Scroll through Instagram, and you’ll see toddlers sharing their first reactions to new foods, singing along to chart-topping hits, or dancing to a Taylor Swift track. Some of these reels rack up millions of likes, and the accounts often boast tens of thousands of followers.

Take, for example, Ryan’s World, the famous YouTube channel run by 10-year-old Ryan. With over 39.8 million subscribers, Ryan’s videos have come close to a cultural phenomenon. In one viral clip—viewed more than 161 million times—young Ryan plays a cashier at McDonald’s while his mother (presumably) plays the customer. Comments are disabled, but the influence—and earnings—are very real. According to estimates cited by The Conversation, Ryan and his family make around $25 million a year from the channel.

And that’s just YouTube. Instagram presents another layer of influence. Despite the platform’s age restriction of 13+, a 2021 report by child protection group Thorn found that nearly 40 per cent of children under 13 had active accounts, based on responses from around 750 young users. Clearly, the rules aren’t stopping kids from logging in—and making their mark.

This raises a key question for parents: How do you navigate this world when your children are inspired to start their own YouTube or Instagram ventures? How do you balance ambition, safety, and healthy online engagement?

Dubai-based Leigh Robertson, a mother to an 11-year-old daughter and a 9-year-old son, would not agree to it, as she firmly says. Emphatic, she says, “My little boy does love many channels and I don’t mind him watching YouTube, but I would not agree to him starting his own channel,” she says. Moreover, as she elucidates, you don’t know who is watching the channel and it’s almost setting the stage for dangerous cyber-bullying.

Robertson also highlights the spewing of negative comments, too. If adults themselves are so badly affected by hurtful comments on the internet, how will a child feel? “I don’t think it’s good at all for their mental health,” she notes. “They’re really not old enough to deal with that kind of exposure.” By her suggestions, she believes that perhaps after the age of 15 and 16 is better for them to start their own YouTube channel, if need be. “But I really wouldn’t encourage the,” she says.

Can it be a full-time job?

Similarly, Dubai-based Caitlin, a homemaker remembers having this very conversation with her eight-year-old son a few days ago. He was enamoured by a child his age on YouTube, who would upload videos of themselves playing with their dog and cat. “He insisted that it’s so simple and there was nothing wrong with it. ‘This is okay Mama’ he kept saying. But my husband and I refused. I’ve seen children becoming influencers and how it really modifies their entire personality and being, and I did not want it for him,” she says.

Caitlin added that her son even knows about how much money these kidfluencers make. “What bothers me, is that he thinks that it is a full-time job. He thinks that people can grow up to be a YouTube star, earn likes, viewers immediately. And I know that it so much harsher than it seems,” she says.

Dr. Sneha John, a clinical psychologist based in Dubai, weighs in on the debate. Echoing Robertson’s concerns, she emphasises that running a rigorous YouTube channel or engaging in influencer work exposes children to unwanted pressures that can be detrimental to their development.

“They’re still making sense of the world at that age,” Dr. John explains. “If they start a YouTube channel, it could lead them to crave social approval and try to fit into a mold.”

According to Dr. John, children can begin to live for the cameras, developing a “performative mindset” where they constantly monitor their behavior in front of others. This can curb the natural freedom of childhood, as they focus more on what others expect than on their own unfiltered experiences. Over time, their real communication and social skills may be affected, and they may become preoccupied with the rise and fall of likes and followers.

“This is a vicious cycle that adults in their late 20s and 30s struggle with,” Dr. John notes. “So how can a pre-teen cope with this kind of unregulated pressure? Worse, they may start measuring their success against others, believing that social media metrics are the gold standard.”

She also warns of external risks, including catfishing and online bullying, as predators can exploit children who are active on these platforms.

Dubai-based Priyanka Sharma, a corporate communications professional, narrates how her son was inspired by his classmate starting a YouTube channel, where he reacted to video games. Acknowledging that this is the new reality of AI and platforms that children live in, Sharma explains, “I’m not against it. They have grown up in this era. But yes, many times I do not like the content,” she says, feeling that there is a surplus of content now. Nevertheless, she does consider channels that discussed books or something more educational that actually has a lot more significance and meaning. “There does need to be a balanced approach to this,” adds Sharma, saying that refusing a child a YouTube channel isn’t beneficial.

Acknowledging that it is indeed difficult to supervise all the time, she does suggest having conversations with a child first, before they’re opened up to the world of trolling and comments. “One parent definitely has to be nominated for supervising, and uploading the content,” she adds, implying that it is how to monitor their well-being.

Similarly, Asha Sherwood, from the Abu Dhabi Review and a fellow mum, explains, “If a five-year-old says they want to be on YouTube, they probably don’t fully understand what that means, so it’s really on you to guide it. I would let them try, but first ask why they want to do it and get them to plan out some ideas - and most importantly, be present while they do it. Most will lose interest after a few days, but if they don’t, then you know it’s something real.”

That said, she says that she would always encourage any creative outlet, because today’s fascination might not be tomorrow’s, but you never know what could spark a real passion or even a future career.