In my previous article, I have mentioned the minimum hours of screen time for the kids. These days we always see kids wearing anti-radiation glasses. These kids as young as three years old always glue themselves on their gadgets and devices. You’d often see them spending more time scrolling down and trying to click keys in order for them to go back to the same level again and again. At that age, they don’t mind not winning the game because what they are after is not rewarded by the sense of enjoyment from seeing moving graphics, shapes and sounds.
On the other hand, if you observe a seven-year-old kid, he perceives mobile games or computer games in a different manner. He begins to succeed at a certain level. At times, it is not just the sense of happiness that they are after for. Most of the time, it is the reward that they aim for; a new level to unlock, a new skill to achieve, a new weapon to purchase. These are the things that a child at this age aims in playing these games.
They differ a lot when it comes to the reason they play games but they got one thing in common when it comes to the effects of longer hours of screen time.
In today’s article, we will find out the:
- effects of longer hours of screen time for the child
- how a parent can manage the hours of screen time for his child
- The right Desk Converter to choose for the child’s screen-time
So, let us begin the discussion.
Our eyes are one of the most sensitive parts of our bodies and too much exposure to gadgets and devices can:
- strain our eyes
- damage the retina (part of the eye that covers the back wall of the eyeball)
- cause blurred vision
In Singapore, Myopia (an eyesight abnormality; resulting from eye’s faulty refractive ability; distant objects appeared blurred) is one of the problems that most people experience and just worsens because of continuous exposure to gadgets and other devices
Excessive exposure to gadgets and devices cause other negative effects to the bodies too such as:
- sleep deprivation
The blue light being emitted from the devices affects the production of melatonin or the sleep hormone making someone really feel awake when being exposed to excessive screen time.
- Obesity
This one has not been linked before to having excessive screen time yet
The sedentary nature of this activity forces the person to cut physical activities. Plus, there are other individuals who are what we call “stress eaters”, some people who are exposed to a device for a long time have the tendency to stay up late or until the wee hours of the morning making their bodies crave for food. Moreover, in some cases commercials advertising food items are present too which becomes tempting to some. If we noticed most binge-watchers are a fan of fast-foods or other sugary foods.
- Chronic Health Conditions:
Type 2 Diabetes, heart disease and cancer are some of the chronic diseases that are caused by this sedentary lifestyle. Most Scientific research show that doing a sedentary lifestyle causes a spike in insulin and blood glucose levels plus it contributes to the accumulation of unhealthy fats in the bloodstream.
- Loss of Cognitive Ability
An individual who is constantly exposed to too much screen time is at high-risk of damage in some parts of the brain such as the gray matter responsible for the cognitive processes to shrink and the white matter that serves as the network to the brain’s signal communication. When this happens it is possible that the children may develop:
- poor memory
- weaker concentration
- weaker impulse control
- slower information processing
The worst part is when a child whose brain is still developing would be the one getting exposed to too much screen time.
- Deprivation of socializing skills
This sedentary activity is also a solitary activity most of the time; this impairs the interpersonal skills of the child because he is losing his real-life interactions such as playing ball games with children his age. It creates a negative impact and there is a possibility that a child may have anti-social tendencies when they spend too much in front of the devices
Why does screen addiction take place?
This sedentary activity is also viewed as a biochemical consequence wherein our body starts to crave pleasurable activities. It’s because the reward center of the brain is constantly stimulated with sedentary activity. Hence, there is a release of the hormones in the body like dopamine. Once this happens, the individual’s mind suddenly creates a sense of euphoria, making the body conditioned to such feeling. Thus, as I mentioned in my previous article, a child becomes less energetic when they couldn’t play mobile or console games.
Given all the facts above, parents should take the necessary actions in a proactive manner. The following things may help us manage our child’s screen time without letting them feel like they are being controlled. So let’s start with:
set an example
Most parents are unaware of this. If you notice, some would think that giving the child most of the privilege of using gadgets just to either pacify them when they are crying or because they want their children to enjoy may be a form of tolerating them. Hence, the way to avoid it is to set an example. If you’re a gamer parent, try not to show it to the child too much. Try to set boundaries and assert authority by making it a rule in the house that there is limited time for devices.
Do a reward system
Try to let the child be encouraged to do other physical and mindfulness activities that stimulate the whole brain once they become successful in doing these activities, make the screen time a reward for him but never exceed the hours of no matter how big is his accomplishment. Set it to 2 hours only. This develops a healthy routine for him.
Be involved in their lives
Talk about what their dream last night was above, ask about his new friends, interact with them and encourage them to do more physical and mindfulness activities. Witness their milestones. Through this, they will see you as a role model and would follow your instructions without restraining or objecting too much.
Now, as we go to the last and important part of the article, we will discuss a type of product that can help you as a parent in managing the screen time of your child and that is a product from Flexispot which are the standing desk converters. These converters are really adjustable, durable, and portable. With these desk converters, you don’t have to worry about your child’s viewing on the device which strains their eyes. You just have to adjust the lift of the product and you may ask your child to view from the device at a distance.
These are the following desk converters which you may choose from:
AlcoveRiser Dual X Desk Converters M8
ClassicRiser Standing Desk Converter M3
AlcoveRiser Standing Desk Converters M7
With these, you may assure and manage your child’s screen time easily and you may witness his milestone.
