Children are spending more hours on screen: experts
If your child has started sitting alone and becoming less interactive with others then you should be alarmed , say doctors
Screen addiction is growing among children, especially after the pandemic and parents should be vigilant about screen dependency, noted doctors from the city.
Doctors shared their insights on the occasion of World Mental Health Day celebrated worldwide on October 10.
Dr Rahul Ratan Bagale, consultant psychiatrist at Manipal Hospital, Kharadi, said that during the pandemic, many students from children and adolescent age groups were attending online classes and they grew familiar with the long exposure to mobile and computer screens.
“When the classes are now going back to offline mode, they are facing a lot of difficulties to reduce their screen timing. Other activities like music videos and other applications on their mobiles are quite distracting for young adult brains. This distraction keeps them glued to the screen and parents are also facing difficulty in convincing their children. Now, it has become so frequent that children are using mobile phones beyond the purpose of what it is meant for their age which is affecting their mental health and concentration,” said Dr Bagale.
He added that many parents are also witnessing that children are getting aggressive due to exposure to mobile phones.
“So, in that regard, mental health professionals can help them in convincing these children,” said Dr Bagale.
Prajakta Kshirsagar, psychology counsellor at Orchids - The International School, Pune said that very often parents complain about their child’s obsession with digital tools.
“In today’s time, we cannot keep children completely away from the screen, but we can identify the red flags before it becomes a serious issue for the kids,” said Kshirsagar
“If your child has started sitting alone and becoming less interactive with others then you should be alarmed and immediately intervene. Also, the rising cases of suicide among minors are a matter of concern. Exposure to the screen often leads us to this dark side of social media, which may provide access to inappropriate content to the child such as sexual and aggressive behaviours,” said Kshirsagar.
