8 minutes agoAuthor: Gaurav Tiwari
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This is the era of social media trends and memes. Here every small or big thing becomes viral on the internet if it is relevant. A meme often goes viral in which a child is having a headache or pain in legs or he has fever. On all these problems, parents give the same taunt that use the phone more.
The meme asks what connection all these things have with the phone, people laugh. But now science studies are saying that there is a connection. What the parents say is absolutely correct.
According to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the increasing screen time of children can emerge as a big problem in the future. This can increase the risk of many diseases.
According to a study published in the Indian Journal of Ophthalmology, the problem of dry eyes is increasing in children due to excessive screen time.
Recently, while hearing a case, the Bombay High Court had said, “Children’s game addiction will prove to be like drug and narcotic addiction in the future. This can cause many damages to mental and physical health. Therefore, it is important that a law be brought on this.”
Overall, most indications are that the use of screens and mobiles is not good for children. If it has anything to do with their studies, then it is important to set its limit and tell them about its healthy use and activities.
so today ‘health report‘ We will know what effect screen has on children. Also, we will understand that-
- What kind of problems are children facing due to this?
- What is a healthy screen time limit for kids?
- What can you do to set time limits and boundaries?
Before proceeding further in the article, let us know what problems technological development has created along with making our lives easier. Famous neurologist and psychiatrist Adam Gazzelli has written a book on this.
(Dr. Gazzelli has also written a book on this – ‘The Distracted Mind: Ancient Brains in a High Tech World’)
Problems are increasing due to screen time
As the restrictions started to ease after the corona pandemic, all activities started to return to their old form. Meanwhile, everyone realized that their screen time had increased a lot. Since children were also dependent on screens for their studies during this time, this problem became even bigger for them.
Apart from studies, they started spending a lot of time with screens, which is still continuing. Now its disadvantages have started to become apparent.
See the graphic below.
attention span is decreasing
The result of spending too much time with the screen is that everyone’s attention span is decreasing. Focus is decreasing. The brain cannot focus on one thing for long. It is very important for our brain development that how long we can continuously focus on a task without getting distracted. According to a study by the University of California, Irvine, the average attention span of humans has fallen rapidly. It has decreased from 2.5 minutes to 47 seconds in the last 20 years.
In the recent past, the screen time of children and teenagers has increased and its effect is also seen more on them. Due to the decrease in attention span, their school-college studies, family relations and physical fitness have been adversely affected.
What is the average screen time for children
The World Health Organization and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry have released a timeline for screen use for children. Most health experts around the world recommend this timeline for children.
What to do to reduce children’s screen time
If the child’s screen time is too much, it will not happen that he will stop using the phone in a single day. For this, it is important that we talk to our child about how he should use social media and the online world. What is good and what is bad for him.
Here are some rules and guidelines that may be useful for reducing screen time for young children:
- We should set parental controls on our device or mobile to limit the content that young children can view.
- Have a healthy conversation with older children and teens about healthy screen time. Tell them how important it is to set some limits.
- Make a rule at home that everyone will turn off their screens an hour before bedtime. You yourself will also have to make it a habit so that children get inspired by looking at you.
- Restrict the use of electronic devices at the dinner table or during family activities.
- Set your own parameters and let your child know that their chores, homework and other activities are important. Using your phone or social media for some time is okay for entertainment.
- Help children understand how less screen time can benefit our mental and physical health.
- Be honest with your children. Don’t force them to change everything at once. Acknowledge how difficult it can be to reduce screen time. Praise your child for their efforts when they are trying to cope.
- If the young child is spending time with a caretaker or institution, make sure that the caretaker has the correct information about screen time limits. He knows and understands everything about this.
- As parents, it is important for us to understand to what extent today’s world is dependent on the Internet. It is also important for children to be comfortable with the Internet and the online world. Therefore, as children grow up, instead of controlling them, tell them how the Internet can be used for their own benefit.
- If children are finding it difficult to reduce screen time or are becoming irritable, try to understand what they are feeling. If they feel that they are missing out on something without screens or the internet, suggest other ways to meet this need. Sports and physical activities may be better options for this.
- If this does not work then you can seek the help of a professional expert.
