Since the past few weeks, video of a child staggering like a drunkard has been going viral on all social media platforms. The attributed reason to the incident is that Central Nervous System (CNS) damage due to excessive usage and addiction to mobile phone and tablet.
However, do not ignore it like any other hoax messages as medical studies prove that frequent smartphone usage can lead to brain damage and the children are at a higher risk of developing attention-deficit / hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Unlike a few years ago, devices have become affordable and it has become an issue of status of not possessing one. You may have bought one just out of curiosity to discover the features that a mobile has, which slowly leads to addiction.
Not considering the long-term effects of over-usage, the modern day parents hand over a phone soon after the child is born. Majority of them do it, so as to make their child learn alphabets or numbers from the videos on YouTube, let alone the truth that the infant would just be a few months old and could not even comprehend what the mother says. Choosing education over child’s health may impact her/him with mental health problems.
Although such gadgets has greatly helped in bridging the gap between assuming and understanding, experts in the city advocate limited usage. The practice of enabling learning through devices like this have entered only in the recent past and until a decade ago, it may be noted that children stuck to studying without technological aids.
The disorder, ADHD comes with the following pattern of symptoms: inattention, hyperactive behaviour and impulsiveness that interferes with functioning or development of brain.
The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, focuses on the mental health consequences of a new generation of ubiquitous digital diversions, including social media, streaming video, text messaging, music downloads and online chat rooms, among others.
The findings have left the parents, schools, technology companies and paediatricians about the adversities of children dependant on devices. The study concludes that teens who were exposed to higher levels of digital media were significantly more likely to develop ADHD symptoms in the future.
The research has helped fill a gap in understanding how new, mobile media devices and seemingly limitless content options pose a mental health risk to children. It serves as a warning as digital media becomes more prevalent, faster and stimulating. See your child meddling with mobile? Time to seize it.