Credit: Google Images
Screen time is significantly increased these days and screen
time management seems challenging in this digital era. Excessive screen time
has various negative consequences, particularly for kids. So, it is very
important to reduce the screen time. Some people argue that most of the screen
time is educational and is important for child’s brain development therefore,
it is really hard to manage this. The American Academy of Pediatrics states
that screen time should be limited to 1-2 hours a day for children above two
years of age while it should be avoided for kids less than two years. Various health
problems are associated with increased screen usage and are discussed below.
Health problems associated with excessive screen time
Obesity
Too much screen time increases the chances of being obese because
this habit reduces the physical activity. Moreover, if you are habitual of eating
unhealthy snacks during screen time it will further add up to health problems
such as indigestion.
Disturbed sleep pattern
Research indicated that screen time has predominant effect on
sleep pattern. Emission of blue light from most of the screens affect the
production of melatonin (sleep hormone) therefore, screen usage before bedtime
makes it difficult to fall asleep. Therefore, it is advisable to avoid screen
usage 1 hour prior to bedtime.
Changes in attention
and behavior
Children are very observant and learn things quickly so, if
they are spending most of their time watching different kind of videos it is
very likely that their behavior would be affected. They tend to recall and
recapitulate what they have seen which affects their studies. According to American
Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, violence is increasing among the children
as they watch action movies and try to implement such behavior in daily life.
Credit: Google Images
Stress on eyes
Staring too much on screen puts a lot of pressure on eyes and
eventually muscles of eyes become weak that leads to vision problems. Moreover,
spending excessive time on screen affects body posture and causes stiffness of
neck and shoulders.
Diminished socializing skills
Social skills are mainly developed by interaction with other
individuals. Spending more time with electronic devices diminish the socializing
ability as it is a solitary activity. With the passage of time excessive screen
users find it hard to interact with other people and this is particularly
damaging for children as they have not yet learnt to develop the connections.
Negative effects on
cognition
It has been examined that excessive use of digital devices
alter the brain structure. It shrinks the grey matter of brain that is mainly
involved in cognition and behavior. Too much screen time can also alter the
synaptic connections and thus changes the processing of information which eventually
lead to decline in memory formation and impulse control. This is a major
concern for children because their brain is still in the developmental stage.
In order to avoid these problems, minimize the screen time
and spend a healthy time with your friends and family.
In the next article, I
will come up with some useful tips to avoid the excessive screen usage
therefore, keep reading…….
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