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THIS IS WHY MOBILE PHONE IS RUINING THE FUN OF CHILDHOOD FROM CHILDREN.

BY DEORAO K.

Every parent can relate to the following example,

Have you ever experienced that your children keep using mobile phones for hours a day? If you try to recover your mobile phone from them they get angry or start crying or get irritated.

Using mobile phones by children may not be that harmful to all of them but because of this it looks like they stop doing creative things, their physical activity has decreased. Because of this mobile phone addiction, they are missing the fun of childhood we used to enjoy.

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The mobile phone has become a part and parcel of our life. Research suggests that we touch a mobile phone on average every 2-3 min. 

That means we are pretty much using our phones all the time except when we can’t avoid work. Our children have a habit of imitating parents and elders in the family. Out of curiosity, they start using phones like you but later get addicted to it, which eventually leads to ruining childhood fun and nobility.

Because elders are on the phone all the time children try to copy it, Or parents have a habit that, they hand over the mobile phone to their children to keep them busy. So, they get time to do other work, but because of this mistake children unknowingly get addicted to mobile phones.

Up to some extent, it is all right to use but if the use increases to addiction it could harm your children’s psychology, intelligence and, physiology.

After prolonged use, they may get addicted to it. They may become irritable, aggressive, and dull in their studies.

Children get obese on prolonged use because of inactivity. Children are not playing enough on the ground because of the phone and they remain stuck to it for hours.

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EFFECTS OF MOBILE PHONES ON CHILDREN

Using a mobile phone for hours can have several adverse effects on children elaborated as follow,

     A)     EFFECTS ON PSYCHOLOGY.

ADDICTION

Children will get easily addicted to the phone especially due to the use of social media and games, Social media addiction is the commonest reason. Adrenaline, dopamine, and corticosteroid enzymes are responsible for addiction.

Children are not mature enough to tolerate the feeling of an adrenaline rush or feeling overwhelmed. They think this is the actual joy and get addicted to mobile phones. When such children grew older there are chances that they will get addicted to other substances also.

OBSESSION

Once children experience overwhelming feelings, they start craving for them. Their limbic brain asks them to do it again and again. They become obsessed to use a mobile phone and eventually, this obsession will turn into aggression and compulsion.

IRRITABILITY

Children will get nervous and irritable when the mobile phone is removed from them for a while, because of the craving to use by the Mesolimbic reward system.

AGGRESSION

Once addicted to a mobile phone, he will start craving for the feeling of ecstatic. In such a condition, if you remove a mobile phone from him he will become obsessive and aggressive. He/she may cry or do other things to express their anger. In extreme cases, children will become violent.

FEAR

Due to prolong use there are chances that, children will become fearful because of violent or intimidating videos and violent comments. In many groups, people have a habit of sharing violent videos, untoward posts, or violent and aggressive comments.

Children’s brain is not mature enough to cope with this stress phenomenon and he will become fearful.

SAD AND LONELY

After the use of a mobile phone especially excessive use of social media makes us feel sad and lonely.  If no one calls and messages you or no one replied to your post you will feel unimportant, nervous, and sad.

Check out how social media is making you feel sad and lonely? The same is true for children rather I will say they are more susceptible than us.

ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION

Craving to use a mobile phone, loneliness, and fear will lead to anxiety and depression in extreme cases. Fear will also lead to anxiety and panic.

     B)      PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL EFFECTS

OBESITY – will result due to prolonged inactivity.

JOINT PAIN – multiple Joints pain for instance neck pain, back pain, finger joint pain, elbow, and shoulder joint pain. The pain will start due to sitting in one position for hours. Or due to inflammation of ligaments of the joints especially the finger joint and wrist joint.

EYE STRAIN – Like eye irritation, redness and headache because of prolonged use.

LEARNING DISABILITY – Prolong use of the mobile phone will shift your focus from studies. If you use mobile for a couple of hours we feel saturated and heavy of the head. The brain will become non-receptive. This will hamper the learning of children. And craving to use mobile phone shift his focus from study and he will not able to concentrate.

This will result in a learning disability. Though, it’s not found commonly but can happen on prolonged use.

OTHERS – Sleep disturbance, abnormal eating habits.

This is how the childhood of your children gets ruined, by making children sick and unhealthy.

You might also like to read,

1. 9 THINGS TO DO BY PARENTS TO GROW CHILDREN MENTALLY STRONG.
2. Feeling Unloved? Once You Understood This You Will Never Feel Unloved Again.

WHAT ARE THE REASONS OR PHYSIOLOGY BEHIND SUCH EFFECTS?

Adrenalin, corticosteroid, and or dopamine are the enzymes responsible for these effects.

Adrenaline and corticosteroid are enzymes responsible for fight or flight response. That means when you are in danger. In stress body secrets these enzymes. When children play games on mobile their body secretes adrenaline that makes them excited. Or if they are stressed because of some untoward content seen on mobile their body secret corticosteroid.

But when their mind read that, this is not the actual danger. The enzymes will not get used and the excess enzyme will have damaging effects on their body for instance irritation, nervousness, high blood sugar, loss of sleep, pounding of heart, anxiety, and restlessness. Or if these enzymes get used adrenaline rush will develop the craving which leads to repeating a similar activity.

The dopamine is secreted by the Mesolimbic pathway and VTA and released by the hypothalamus. Dopamine produces a feeling of pleasure and satisfaction. The Mesolimbic pathway is the reward pathway.

For example, when someone likes your post on social media, It will secret Dopamine in the Mesolimbic pathway and This makes you feel rewarded, it will make you feel happy and overwhelmed. On repeated use, our mind asks for more reward and this leads to craving.

On the other hand, if no one likes your post or no one calls and messages you, you will feel nervous, angry, irritated, unimportant, sad and, lonely. The same is true for your children.

” Children’s brain is not programmed and mature enough to tolerate these feelings and they easily get affected. This is how mobile the phone is ruining the childhood of your children”

WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT?

If you don’t want this to happen with children, and if you don’t want a mobile phone to ruin the fun and sweetness of childhood, you can consider the following tips.

• Since lockdown everything become online including schools. This makes it practally impossible for parents to keep school going children to keep away from mobile phone You can still keep check on them to minimize use.

•  Don’t give a mobile phone or any other gadgets to your children until college. If you want them to use it for a while, set the discipline for mobile phone use. such as, allow them to use for fixed hours in a day and not to use during the study time. Not to use the internet and keep a check on them what they are doing with the mobile phone.

• Dopamine is not the actual happiness neurotransmitter but oxytocin and serotonin are. These neurotransmitters get secreted on the physical activity like exercise, sports, playing on the ground. Encourage and motivate your children to increase playtime or ask and support them to participate in sports. this will make them fit and happy.

• Explain to them how the use of mobile is not good for them. Children understand easily if you tell them in the language they could understand.

• Parents and elderly people in the home should avoid the use of mobile phones in front of children because children imitate their parents and other elderly people in the house.

• If you allowed them to use a mobile phone for a fixed time in a day keep a check on them, don’t allow them to join illegal or questionable groups on social media, keep watch on what kind of videos they are watching.

• If children play with other children, it will increase their social intelligence. Also, develop their language, and speaking skills.

• Explain to them how playing games on mobile and overusing social media is not good for them.

• Every time let them know that you love and care for them because if children feel unloved they will find escapism like social media.

• If you think your child is already suffering from these signs and symptoms, then seek professional help from the licensed practitioner.

• Beware of all gadgets. Don’t let the mobile phone ruin the childhood of your children.