OUT WITH THE OLD AND IN WITH THE NEW: HOW THE AGE OF TECHNOLOGY IS AFFECTING OUR YOUTH

Ah, childhood. The good ol’ days when you had nothing to worry about but which game to play with your friends (four square or tag?). The endless after school play-dates in the sun, the rush of wind as you rode your bicycle down the street so fast that you felt like you were flying. Is everyone feeling the nostalgia yet? Well, except if you’re a child of what is known as the ‘digital-age’-then you probably have no idea what I’m talking about.

That’s right folks, the times have changed! No longer is it a norm of the American childhood experience to play outside with friends during free time. Instead, today’s kids are stuck INSIDE, with eyes glued to screens. Anything from T.V. sets to computers to phones (remember when phones didn’t have screens?) to tablets, screens are everywhere and in every part of our daily lives, and that means our youths’ lives too. In fact, studies have shown that “there are around “5,000 apps for toddlers and 1,000 newborns.”

Many of us are wondering-what could a toddler, or better yet an infant, possibly do with apps? But the real question is: how does this bombardment of technology effect young people’s lives? I was born in the mid 1990’s, when the Digital Age technically first began. I would say that computers and video games certainly did have an impact on my life, but perhaps not as much as the generations after me. In today’s world, children do not know life without screens, as even toddlers know who to unlock a touch screen device but not how to say speak.

Teenagers are so exception. According to researcher Michael E. Bratis, “The average U.S. teen spends seven hours and 38 minutes a day — more than 53 hours a week — watching TV or using a computer, mobile device, or video game… That’s more time than students spend in school each week.” This consumption of time leads to many negative side effects, including “ 1) obesity ( all of the sitting around watching commercials about fast food really encourages physical activity, doesn’t it?), 2) sleep disturbances, 3) poor school performance, 4) hindered peer relationships, 5) and undermining of learning,”

This seems pretty logical, right? The more time children and teens spend with eyes glued to a screen, the less time they have to study and do homework, so their school performance decline. Also, this leaves little to no time to socialize, which is stereo-typically what teens love to do, so it is ironic that in this small world where we are all so connected through technology that socializing has become less important.

But what about sleep disturbances? Well, have you ever seen a child melt down in the store because mom said “no more playing games on my phone right now. I need to make a call,” only to soon return the device to said screaming child in order to calm them? I have witnessed this much too often, and it clearly shows that excessive screen time heavily stimulates children to the brink of hyper activity. Don’t believe me? Watch the video in the link below. With eyes constantly staring at brightly lit screens or the flashing lights of video games, the brain’s of both children and adults are constantly active, and so even when they go to sleep, they continue to see those lights (just check out the article on 3 year old William-who woke up his father at 4 a.m. so give him his ipad).

Studies have shown that that consistent digital viewing causes both behavioral and attention problems in children and teens. Any kind of media, whether it be television, video games, computers, or smart phone viewing have been shown to effect the attention span and even sleep patterns of teens and children. They also can predict a higher likeliness of aggression (particularly depending on the content of the media being viewed), depression, anti-social behavior, and anxiety.

What is interesting is the connection to this overload of media use and the increase in diagnoses of both Autism and attention disorders, like ADD. When children act out or seem distracted, parents and teachers more often than not blame it on learning disabilities and disorders, like ADHD, ADD, and autism. Child psychiatrist Dr. Victoria L. Dunkley has coined the term “Electronic Screen Syndrome (ESS),” which is the overstimulating effects of excessive screen time on children’s nervous systems that cause them to act out. She argues that many children and teens are too often falsely deemed “hyper active” and medicated, when the real problem is that they are overly stimulated by the bombardment of technology in our increasingly digital world.

As you can see, the findings of the effects of excessive screen time on children seem to be largely negative. However, it is important to realize that technology is not all bad and can actually be beneficial in helping your child learn. The real problem lies in the fact that we live in a world that is now dominated by technology-engineers and scientists are constantly coming up with the latest gadgets that are supposed to make our lives “easier.” This bombardment makes it simple to fall into the mindset of thinking every new technological advancement is great, when in fact some of the old ways of raising children worked just fine. I mean-I spent my childhood riding my bike and drawing (I didn’t get my first phone until I was 14-AND I shared it with my sister!) and I think I ended up okay. So, if you’re a parent or thinking of becoming one, perhaps it would be in your best interest to research he pros and cons of letting your children use the latest gadgets, and ask yourself, “does my toddler really need an ipad?”