Screen addiction of children, Gurudev warns Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Children are spending more time on digital devices today. Spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar has warned that excessive screen time is damaging his mental health and preventing creativity.
In short
- Screen addiction is affecting children’s mental and physical health
- Excessive screen exposure is associated with sleep issues and reduces the duration of attention
- Spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar warns of decline in creativity in children
According to spiritual leader Gurudev Sri Ravi Shankar, children are spending more time on phones, tablets and computers in today’s digital world.
While technology has its own benefits, experts are increasing red flags that screen time is affecting mental and physical welfare of too much children.
“The nervous system of young children is still developing. When you are looking at the screen, according to the research, that part of the brain responsible for creativity starts shrinking because you do not blink the eyelid. If you are hogging the screen in a blink of an eye, it causes great damage to the parasimpethetic nervous system,” he said in an interview with Sneha Mordani.
Studies have shown that excessive screens in children may be reduced from time to time, the duration of attention, obesity and even poor academic performance may occur.
Many parents also report that their children become irritable or worried when their equipment is taken away.
The founder of the Art of Living Foundation said, “Children are required to be given limited time to keep away from phone or to be exposed on screen.”
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines, children younger than 18 months should avoid the screen except video chatting. For children between the ages of 2 to 5 years, the screen time should be limited to one hour of high quality programming per day, to help them understand what they are looking to understand with parents or carers.
A study published in JAMA pediatrics found that children aged 1 year had high screen time, which is more likely to experience developmental delay in communication and problem solving skills at the age of 2 and 4 years.
The spiritual leader said, “This is ignorance when the parents know that it will happen to the children, but they will not. Because there is no awareness. They prevent all the children from touching their phones. Even the screen time should be limited,” said the spiritual leader.
Since digital devices become more common in everyday life, it is important for parents and teachers to make a mindful option and make healthy screen habits quickly, they insisted.
