A recent article published in The Atlantic analyzes the significant impact that smartphone use can have on the mental health and development of children and teens. With the rise of digital devices, children are exposed to a world that is vastly different from the one their parents grew up in.
According to a 2020 report by Common Sense Media, 53% of children in the U.S. have their own smartphone by age 11, and that figure rises to 84% by age 14. The CDC reports that on average, children aged 8-12 in the U.S. spend 4-6 hours per day on screens, while teens spend up to 7-9 hours daily.
These trends are concerning. When children are spending the majority of their time passively consuming content, there is no room for learning, creativity, problem solving, and meaningful interaction.
Childhood is a critical period for development and requires active engagement, exploration, and immersion in the world around them. There is no time to waste with phones or screens in childhood because learning does not happen passively, it happens immersively.Distracting our kids with screens is doing them a major disservice. By allowing excessive screen time, we’re compromising their development.
Excessive screen exposure dulls creativity and limits intellectual development because learning in 2D does not compare to actively participating within the world.
The constant stimulation from screens can interfere with a child’s ability to think and process information, develop discernment, and increase stress responses in the brain and body. Over exposure to this stimulus can make it difficult for children to focus on slower, more deliberate tasks like reading, problem-solving, or creative thinking. This heightened state of alertness strains the mind and increases stress responses in both the brain and body, contributing to anxiety, irritability, and even behavioral issues.
These problems are mental and physical. Digital devices disrupt the natural rhythms of a child’s life. This includes sleep patterns, hormone levels, and emotional regulation. I believe the constant exposure to screens can lead to dysregulation of the entire body and is a major factor in rising rates of depression, anxiety, addiction, and suicide.
Children need the real world. They need time to be bored. They need to explore the senses. They need face-to-face interaction, time to think and process, explore nature, and engage in physical activities.
One of a parent’s most important roles is to nurture and develop their child’s unique talents, guiding them to embody the excellence we hope to see in the world.
This demands active participation in their education and the cultivation of their abilities, understanding that real learning is an engaged, hands-on process. Prioritizing this growth over distractions like excessive screen time is essential. There are no shortcuts in raising children.
Some of my Favorite Parenting Tips:
- Always have a STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE.
- Limit all social media under the age of 16 – it is unproductive.
- Children are mirrors and don’t do as you say, they do as you do. Act as you wish them to act and lead by example.
- Spend time everyday outside in nature: sunsets, dips in the ocean, barefoot walks, climbing trees, riding horses, and connecting with animals. Childhood is for the outside.
- Treat them like little adults. At the dinner table, let them be a part of the conversation and ask them what they think about everything.
- Study scenes from history & myth. Learn poems, epics, and old art – even if they are seemingly forgotten, their imprint lives on within the child. They should study the great men and women of history and their stories who will direct their conscience and moral strength.
- Read as many high quality books as possible – with them, to them, and alone.
- Expensive experiences are not needed for childhood. Go to the library for free books, walk to the lake for a free zoo, eat food at home for better nutrition.