Imagine a world where a small mobile phone has such a powerful effect that it changes the brain chemistry of millions of children. This is not a distant future. This is our reality today. We often see a 3-year-old who doesn’t eat until the cartoon runs on the phone. Or a 5-year-old who can’t speak properly because he’s watching TV all day long. Although these devices seem harmless and convenient, they have a dangerous impact on the future of our children.
Let’s compare family life at that time and now. In the 1990s, an Indian family could gather in the evenings. Father was reading newspapers. Mother used to talk about her day. A daughter asked for help with homework. A younger son used to play with toy cars. Everyone was really together, talking, laughing and building strong relationships.
Now, imagine an Indian family. Father used to be scrolling the news on his phone. Mother was watching TV shows. The 10-year-old daughter used to be watching Instagram. Three-year-old watching YouTube shorts on tablet. Both are in the same room, but both are lost in their respective digital worlds. No conversation, no laughter, no true connection. Just the blue light of the screen on their faces. This silent epidemic of screen addiction is having a terrible impact on our children, our new generation. It’s time to uncover the truth about screen addiction through the latest scientific research.
Very few people are discussing this growing problem, but its effects are very serious. Many parents are already seeing changes in their children.
Shocking statistics about screen addiction
A survey in October 2024 surveyed over 70,000 parents in Indian cities. The results were shocking:
These statistics run counter to health suggestions. The World Health Organization (WHO) suggests that children under 2 years of age should not be given screen time at all. For 2 – to 4-year-olds, the maximum screen time should be one hour per day.
However, the actual statistics for India show a different picture:
Many parents may think that a few hours of screen time a day doesn’t matter. But research shows that even a little screen time can have a big impact.
Aarav’s story: A warning sign
Consider the story of Aarav, a 9-year-old boy from Gurgaon, Haryana. Both his parents worked for long hours. When Aarav was just 1 year old, his parents started giving him a smartphone to keep quiet while he was at work. They thought it was an easy solution.
But over time, Aarav became dependent on the phone. He ate only when he had a phone. This was a clear warning sign, but her parents took no action on it. When Aarav turned 4, he got his phone. He used to spend his time on the phone instead of playing outside. His parents also promoted the habit, as they feared he would mingle with “bad” children outside.
As the years passed, Aarav’s eyes became so weak that he needed glasses. Her parents found this normal as they both wore glasses. Then, Aarav started having headache. The doctor told them to keep him away from the screen. To this extent, Aarav’s addiction had become so deep that he became very angry when he snatched the phone from him. He would also hit his head against the wall, much like a drug addict would when he got rid of his addiction. Aarav’s case is not unique; Thousands of children around the world face similar problems.
Excessive screen time affects children’s body and mind in many harmful ways. These problems extend everywhere, from physical health to mental development.
Eye problems: myopia epidemic
Children who spend too much time in front of screens indoors are being deprived of natural light. This greatly increases the risk of nearsightedness, also known as nearsightedness. Myopia makes it difficult to see distant things clearly. This is becoming a widespread problem. The Association of Community Ophthalmologists of India has warned that if this trend continues, half of Indian children will need glasses by 2050. To learn more about protecting your eyes, you can watch this useful video: How to protect your eyes naturally with glasses?
Disruption of sleep cycle
Excessive screen time spoils children’s sleep. This increases the risk of sleep related diseases like insomnia. A review of 67 studies in children aged 5 to 17 found that more screen time means less sleep. Here are some specific findings:
This happens because electronic devices emit light that suppresses a hormone called melatonin, which helps us sleep. Our body produces melatonin when it gets dark, indicating it’s time to sleep. Screen light prevents this. This delays sleep and reduces deep sleep. Children are particularly sensitive to this effect; suppression of melatonin in children is twice as frequent as in adults.
Poor sleep affects children in many ways:
Childhood obesity
Children who spend more time on screen have a higher risk of obesity. The reason for this is clear: they are not very active. Instead of playing outside, they spend time on screen at home. In the US, children now spend less time outside than prisoners. A survey in Britain asked 1,000 children about sports. Shockingly, 23% of children thought playing video games an exercise. Many parents give phones to children to keep them calm while eating. Due to this habit, children eat more calories because they get distracted. This increases their risk of weight gain. For example, the 18-month auspicious did not eat until the cartoon ran on the phone. This trend can be changed if parents understand child psychology and brain science. Parents facing these challenges, may consider joining Riddhi Deorah’s 90-minute parenting masterclass. Riddhi is a parenting coach who has helped over 2,00,000 parents. In her class, she teaches how to raise happy and confident children. She discusses child psychology and explains why children become addicted to screens, how parents lose control, and how these habits can be changed.
Dental problems and digestive problems
A survey conducted in major Indian cities like Mumbai and Bengaluru found that more than 80% of mothers let their children watch TV while eating. They do this so that children can eat peacefully. However, it also has a major disadvantage:
The impact of screen time goes much deeper than physical health. It directly affects a child’s mental development, literally changing the structure of their brain.
Weak executive function skills
Excessive screen time, especially in a child’s early years, can undermine their executive function skills. These skills are important for life, and help:
These skills shape how a person handles education, relationships, jobs, self-confidence, and self-care later in life. A study published in JAMA Pediatrics found that the more time children under the age of 1 spend on screen, the worse their executive function capacity is at the age of 9.
Screen time also alters the parietal lobe of the brain. It affects the child’s ability to process sensory information such as touch, heat, cold, and pain.
A hypnosis effect
The screen can create a hypnosis-like situation. Bright colors, fast-moving photos, repetitive patterns, and sound effects are all designed to distinguish children from the real world. Due to this, children’s attention becomes very focused and they become addicted to it.
In a video, a mother is seen coughing and lying in front of her three children as if she is very ill. Usually, children are worried and try to help. But in the video, only one child brought water. The remaining two children remained glued to the TV and did not even look up. This shows how screens can attract children, making them less aware of the environment around them.
Some YouTube channels, such as CoComelon, use special technologies to take advantage of children’s vulnerabilities. They employ highly saturated colors, energetic music, and rapid visual changes (every 2-3 seconds). Even the still standing characters have a slight movement. This constant activity is scientifically designed to capture and retain children’s attention, causing them to become addicted.
Developmental Delay: Language and Motor Skills
Another terrible effect of screen time is developmental delay. In Udhampur, Jammu, Priya’s daughter could speak “Mamma” and “Papa” at the age of two. But after being highly exposed to the screen, her speech development stopped. By the age of five, she could only speak a few words. Even after a year of speech therapy, she could not make complete sentences.
Parenting coach Riddhi Devra has confirmed that excessive screen use can cause such delays. He shared a case where a three-year-old child could speak every word, but could not add them to sentences. Doctors found that the child had too much screen time, mostly watching “Tom and Jerry”. Because these cartoon characters are mute, the child would try to imitate them, learning to work without speaking.
Children are socially learners. They learn to talk in two main ways:
Screens fail in both areas:
The absence of real interaction means that the child’s language development remains incomplete. A survey of 421 parents found that when parents or children are often on the phone, children’s grammar and vocabulary are weak. A working mother reported that her 12-year-old still struggled with speech delays because she was given extra screen time as a child.
In addition to language, sitting in front of a screen disables the body. This limits the use of motor skills, which help children to walk and move arms and legs. These skills remain weak.
Research involving more than 7,000 children found that 1-4 hours of screen time for a child under the age of one causes three times as much delay in communication and problem-solving by age 2. If the screen time was more than 4 hours, the communication delay was about five times greater. There was also almost twice as much delay in small muscle movements (hands, fingers, wrists) and personal/social skills.
During the Covid pandemic, a couple in Ahmedabad allowed their daughter to spend all her time on screen. At age 4, she could barely walk and spoke very little.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and virtual autism
Rohan’s story is another example. Her parents worked, and her father would show her cartoons on the phone to feed her at the age of two. Rohan started imitating cartoon sounds and dialogues. But as her screen time increased, she began to show severe symptoms of ADHD. He began to have difficulty concentrating, had no interest in socialising, and could not sit still. When his phone was taken away, his tantrums grew so much that his parents had to go to the doctor.
Some reports also link screen time to a condition called virtual autism. This includes social isolation, lack of social skills, language delays, and attention problems. A person told on Twitter that a child in his family developed autism at the age of two and a half due to watching TV throughout the day. Even after three years of treatment, the child is able to speak only a few words.
Anxiety, depression and loneliness
You probably think that these problems only affect infants and young children, and that older children are safe. This is not true. A study of 117 research papers in 10.5-year-olds found that children with more screen time had a higher risk of further anxiety and depression.
When these children face life’s problems, they often become more dependent on screens. This creates a dangerous cycle. Phones and video games, like alcohol for some adults, become a means of escape. This provides temporary relief, but worsens emotional problems. They cannot learn solutions to problems by talking to people in real life, which deepens depression, insomnia and loneliness.
The cycle of addiction
The biggest problem with excessive screen time is addiction. Like Aarav, many children get addicted to it. Interesting experiences related to video games and online content release dopamine in the brain, making children feel good. It activates the reward system of the brain. By repeated use, the brain becomes addicted to this dopamine level, which is called decreased reward sensitivity. To feel the same pleasure, the child needs more dopamine, so they spend more time online.
12-year-old Kishan is a serious example of this. During the Covid pandemic, she used tablets for online classes. Soon, she started playing games, watching movies and using social media, which made her addicted. Kishan stops talking to his family and loses interest in playing with siblings. He ate less, and his sleep cycle deteriorated. Investigations revealed that he was malnourished and had low hemoglobin. He was also prone to depression and anxiety, which required psychiatric care.
Another 10th grade kid stole ₹15,000 from his mother to buy her phone when she refused. The mother came to know about this when the school principal told her.
This addiction often begins with ingredients that seem harmless, such as cocomelon. It teaches numbers, letters, colors and daily activities. However, its design is the real threat. Cocomelon videos are used in:
These characteristics are scientifically designed to attract children’s attention and create addiction. Many parents report that their children behave like addicts while playing cocomelon. Its fast speed reduces children’s attention and attention span, making normal, slow activities seem boring. This reduces their interest in real life. Online parents have linked Cocomelon to anger problems, ADHD, autism, and speech delays, describing their children as behaving like “zombies”.
Dealing with screen addiction requires simple, but often difficult changes. This means protecting the physical and mental health of children.
Strict screen time limits for young children
The most straightforward solution is to keep young children completely off the screen.
Many parents use screens for convenience. But remember, this feature comes at the expense of your child’s physical health, mental health, and future. Long-term effects may not be visible right now, but by the time they appear, it may be too late to repair the damage.
Understand the root cause of addiction
Children are not addicted to screens, but to things they get from screens:
When they don’t find these things in the real world, they turn to the screen. They look at the screen like a best friend who listens to them, grants their wishes, entertains them and keeps them happy. If your child is already addicted to it in some form or the other, do not scold or criticize him. Blaming him will re-attract him to the screen to make up for his emotional deficiency. Instead, support your child and fight the screen together.
Involve the family and lead by example
Sometimes grandparents or other relatives give the children screens during games, even if the parents are strict. If this happens, share this information with your relatives so that they can understand its dangers.
The most important step is for parents to reduce the time they spend on screen in the presence of children. Children learn more from their actions than from words. If they see you glued to the screen, they’ll want to copy you. Studies show that children whose parents use phones in front of them spend more screen time themselves. If you yourself are not setting an example, there will be no benefit in explaining or scolding.
Encourage healthy activities and set limits
When children are older than 5 years, you can set strict deadlines and control what they see. Prioritize educational and interactive content. Encourage physical activities such as outdoor games or dancing for about 3 hours daily to promote physical growth.
When screens are removed, many creative activities can make up for this shortcoming:
Invoking the child’s interest in these activities requires parental involvement and teaching.
Create screen-free zones
Mark certain areas in your home as screen-free areas. Bedrooms and dining rooms are great choices. No one, children or adults, should be allowed phones or screens in these areas. You can determine specific rooms where screens are allowed. Always remember to follow these rules before asking your children to do so.
These parenting tips about screen-free time are important. If you are a parent, delving into child psychology and parent psychology can prove to be a very effective solution for you. Additionally, you can protect your family’s eye health and understand how to prevent the need for glasses.
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