Limiting Electronics May Be the Best Way!
I came upon this research that I wanted to share:
Do You Know A Child with these Symptoms?
- irritable moods
- poor focus
- disorganized or defiant behavior
- tearfulness, frustration, meltdowns
- anger that comes on easily
- insomnia or panic attacks
- depression or loss of interest in anything that’s not electronics
- weight gain or high blood pressure
Some may think that this child needs medication for ADHD. But Dr. Virginia Dunckley convinces parents of such children to try an experiment first to test for Electronic Screen Syndrome. It’s simple. They would try a 30-day fast from all Screens, and these symptoms would disappear! (The Dangers of Too Much Screen Time — A Talk with Victoria Dunckley, Author of Reset Your Child’s Brain. https://www.newworldlibrary.com/ArticleDetails/tabid/230/ArticleID/339/Default.aspx#.XMjitXdFyYM)
Children with Electronic Screen Syndrome may be struggling in school because they can’t get their work done, and display immature behavior that irritates their peers, such being a “sore loser” or arguing all the time. During free time, they may have lost interest in anything that isn’t electronically-based, and show little imaginative play or creative expression.
This can Lead to depression, irritation, mood swings, defiant behavior, trouble handling conflict, reading social cues, making eye contact. Focus, organization, and deep thinking are affected. Sleep is highly affected, and melatonin production is inhibited. These problems disappear when technology is temporarily removed and carefully added back after the fast.
Many children suffer from this Electronic Screen Syndrome, which is stress on the brain from too much interactive screen time. The good news is that these symptoms disappear with a total fast from electronics for 3-4 weeks. Just cutting back does not work—it takes a complete fast. To heal completely, parents should replace the former screen time with daily chores and activities, a regular bedtime and routine, and plenty of love.
Interactive Screen time is so much worse than Passive Screen time, researchers have found. In fact, if Dr. Dunckley’s experimenting parents cheated on the four-week goal and allowed a small amount of passive screen time, such as tv watching, the fast could continue and be successful. However, if the parent allowed even a small amount of interactive screen time, such as games, the fast was totally spoiled. Educational screen time was just as harmful at stressing brains as games, Dr. Dunckley found.
The stimulation that video games provide “is really about the pacing, how fast the scene changes per minute,” said Dr. Dimitri Christakis, a pediatrician at the University of Washington School of Medicine who studies children and media. If a child’s brain gets habituated to that pace and to the extreme alertness needed to keep responding and winning, he said, the child ultimately may “find the realities of the world underwhelming, understimulating” (Perri Glass, “Fixated by Screens, but Seemingly Nothing Else,” New York Times, May 9, 2011, http://www).
It is so easy to hand a small child a tablet or phone to keep them occupied. But to protect their young brains, we should wait til at least 18 months-2 years. Their brains cannot process the constant change of picture on the screen and bad dreams can be the result. One mother told me that after she began limiting screen time for her youngsters, they began to do so much more imaginative play—making up stories and playing make-believe. She was so delighted at this result, so good for developing brains.
“In today’s world, don’t my kids need to be tech savvy?” parents ask. Actually, it may be way more important to protect their developing brains—the frontal lobe is not finished developing until age 25—than anything else. “Computer skills do not predict wages, but reading and math skills do,” maintains Dr. Dunkley. Overall, “the best way to help kids use technology in a healthy and productive manner as adults may be to restrict technology use when young.”
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