Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master – Christian Lous Lange

Technology addiction is a common problem seen in people of different ages, but for a child’s developing brain too much of time spent on screen can be damaging. Technology is growing and constantly developing just as quickly as our children. With constant exposure to the screen, it’s natural for a parent to be concerned about what all the screen time is doing to our children. The development of technology and the internet have made us and our children much more liable to their addictive nature. It is very important to control our usage and understand what other precautions we can take to protect ourselves and our children from internet and technology addiction.

The Dangers of Too Much Screen Time

It’s up to us as a parent to monitor and control the amount of time our kids spend online each day. We need to make sure that the child has time for other important activities, such as eating healthy food, reading, writing, physical activities, extracurricular activities, etc.
Some of the negative effects of spending time onscreen are:

• Unhealthy Nutrition
• Excessive weight loss or obesity
• Feeling of loneliness
• Bored while performing routine work
• Memory loss
• Poor personal care and hygiene
• Eye dryness and other vision problems
• Shyness and social anxiety

Different ways to manage Technology Addiction

Be a Good Story Teller: Make time out of your busy schedules and bring back the old way of parents telling stories to their children. Remember that children are always in vital need of attention. If they don’t get that from you, they’ll get back to gadgets which will only harm their health.

Engage children in sports activities: Schools give importance on physical education but the school’s efforts don’t go far enough without your support. You should encourage children to take up outdoor and indoor sports. These sports not only divert their attention from smartphones but also make your children healthier.

Personal attention: In this busy world we should take out some of our time and give it to our children. You should realize spending time with family is very important for your kids. Have your children tell you how well they spent their days at school. Make up a friendly bond with them and ask about their experiences and try to know their hidden feelings or thoughts about something or someone, if any.

What example are you setting before your children with your relationship to technology? Kids develop habits from parents. They take up our actions such as checking phone continuously and needing constant stimuli, it might be time to slow you down from your own technology addiction. We can take up a hobby to be busy in our routine. Watch yourself through the eyes of your child and show them that you are also willing to stop excessive time spent on technology too.

Author’s name- Mamta Sharma