The following article is Plugger U Author Jill Simonian, a mother and outreach director from California Plugger U Kidsprovides free, values-based educational content in history, civics, and financial literacy to students in grades K-12.
Recent revelations in Jonathan Haidt's book Anxious GenerationHeadlines touting Instagram's new parental controls and the U.S. Surgeon General's 2024 recommendation for warning labels on social media platforms are calling on parents and educators to face up to the serious and potentially irreversible consequences associated with unlimited screen time for children and teens.
Additional data that hit the news earlier this year included a 50 percent increase in rates of depression among young people over the past decade and a recent study from the Substance Abuse and Mental Services Administration (SAMHSA) that found that 8 million young people between the ages of 12 and 17 are currently receiving counseling, medication, or other treatment for their mental health.
Is this tragic epidemic the result of lax parenting and timid educators who have failed to heed warnings based on previous scientific research and medical recommendations?
Countless children and teens are experiencing crises including loneliness, isolation, teen suicide, gender dysphoria, and behavioral and psychological issues. Years before COVID-19 lockdowns, forced isolation, and a surge in youth screen use, many were sounding the alarm about the potential long-term dangers of excessive screen and social media for young people.
In 2015, the American Academy of Pediatrics noted that young children who spend more than two hours a day looking at screens may be nearly eight times more likely to develop Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) by age 5. In 2019, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Pediatrics found that 2-3 year olds who spend two to three hours a day looking at screens are less likely to develop motor skills, communication, problem-solving and social skills by age 3-5.
But does screen time actually affect the physical structure of children's brains, their emotional development, and their mental health? In 2016, neuroscientists (Dr. Peter Whybrow of the University of California, Los Angeles, and Dr. Andrew Doan, chief of addiction research for the Pentagon and the U.S. Navy) called heavy screen time “digital heroin,” pointing out that the images of a digitally immersed brain are comparable to the effects of cocaine on the mind. In 2018, CBS News 60 min An early study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) reported that children ages 9 to 10 who use smartphones, tablets and video games for more than seven hours a day experience premature and significant thinning of the brain cortex.
For elementary school students, a 2018 study from the NIH found that kids who looked at screens for more than two hours a day scored lower on tests of thinking and language skills, and today, schools across the country report record numbers of students unable to make it through an entire day without screens. Disruptive behavioral challenges or Lack of literacy and math skillsAs of 2023, only 43% of American fourth graders were at or above the proficient level in reading, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).
This is because the vast majority of children and young people today Delayed or damaged brain development, Could it be that it was caused by factors that parents and teachers have conveniently ignored for nearly a decade?
Correlation does not necessarily equal causation, but New short documentary from PragerU Void The book delves into the modern mental health epidemic and offers solutions to help Gen Z and their families find purpose, take responsibility, and overcome loneliness and isolation.
Here are some ways to improve your next generation of trajectories:
- Eliminate screen time that slows your toddler's development. Educators warn that some of today's most popular children's shows, such as “Cocomelon,” cause sensory overload and poor attention spans. teeth High-quality, age-appropriate and educationally sound digital content for children—Find it, use it, enjoy it, limit it.
- Wait until your child is 13 to give them a cell phone, but don’t allow them access to social media or the internet.
- Ban content that dulls teenagers' intelligence. Chinese teenagers are reportedly being forced to watch math and science videos on TikTok, while American teens are being lured into content that is physically and mentally harmful. We are smarter than that.
- Banning smartphones during class (except in emergencies). Many schools have already done this.Plugger U Kids Her most recent educational partner is Superintendent Ellen Weaver. By banning the use of smartphones during class, teachers and students have the “freedom to concentrate.”
The better we know, the better we can respond. A healthy and strong nation cannot survive without a healthy future generation. Parents and educators must wake up, take control, and act on the mounting data that shows screen time is one of the leading factors crippling our children's physical, developmental and emotional development, and our nation's future.
For more information, visit PragerU.
