Local Pediatrician Says Skip the Smartphone Section
CONTRIBUTED BY EAH
OPELIKA —
Screen time for children comes in many forms, and the collective exposure plays a pivotal role in this crucial period of mental, physical and emotional growth. For teens and pre-teens alike, the most seductive form of screen time, figuratively speaking — but sometimes literally — is a cell phone. In particular, a smartphone.
Dr. Sara Smith T, a pediatrician at Pediatric Clinic LLC and mother of six, is on a mission to make parents aware of the risks that face children when it comes to smartphones.
“It’s a hot topic, and it needs to be hotter,” Smith T said. “By acknowledging the dangers that come with unrestricted access, parents can take the steps necessary to protect their children from danger.”
The danger that smartphones pose to adolescents has led to initiatives springing up across the country encouraging parents to hold off on giving their children the devices.
According to Smith T, the best way for parents to protect their children from risk is to identify the issues which present the biggest threats.
“Parents are confronting the risks smartphone-use poses to their children on three fronts: too much use of screens, types of content available to kids and the big elephant in the room, social media,” Smith T said.
Smith T said she believes that it is up to parents to recognize the risks and take steps to reduce them.
SCREENED-IN
With children being introduced to smartphones and other digital devices at younger ages, the amount of time a child is engaged with a screen expands exponentially as they grow. When unrestricted, this increase in screen time can lead children and teens into dangerous territory.
“Roughly 46% of teens say they are almost always engaged on their phone,” Smith T said, citing a 2022 study. “When you consider that the average phone usage time for 13- to 18-year-olds exceeds seven hours a day, that’s a ton.”
Smith T said that unrestricted screen time for children and teens can lead to a plethora of negative effects, both mental and physical.
Excessive exposure to screens has led to an increase in risk for symptoms of depression, anxiety and low self-esteem. The blue light generated by smartphone screens leading up to bed can also lead to unhealthy sleeping habits, an issue that can compound other negative effects.
“Parents don’t like it, but they just don’t feel like they can say, ‘okay, this is bad and here is what we are going to do about it.,’” Smith T said.
According to Smith T, working in tandem with too much screen time is the threat of unrestricted access to content that smartphones offer. Though many smartphones have parental restrictions on them, children and teens often find ways around them.
“Children and teens are very tech savvy, and, at the touch of a button, can pull up anything,” Smith T said.
She points to the risk that social media as well as certain games and entertainment apps can have such as providing access to content parents would prefer to shield their children from, such as violence or adult content. Such content can be triggering to youths and can deteriorate mental health.
While there are clearly risks associated with excessive usage, not all content and screen time is considered bad. By limiting screen exposure, parents can help foster a healthy environment for their children by reducing the risk of negative effects.
Smith T points to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) family media plan as a good starting point for setting digital boundaries. The plan encourages families to build healthy habits when it comes to screens by creating “tech-free” zones and times.
“Parents need to feel empowered to have a media plan as a family,” Smith T said. “Instead of the plan being to cut off phones at supper time and eat together, the default plan should be we’re off our phones completely while at home, and we have a scheduled electronics hour when we engage with our devices.”
MEDICAL SYMPTOMS OF SOCIAL MEDIA
In late May 2023, the U.S. surgeon general issued an advisory regarding the effects social media has on youth mental health.
An excerpt from the advisory states, “Excessive and problematic social media use, such as compulsive or uncontrollable use, has been linked to sleep problems, attention problems and feelings of exclusion among adolescents … nearly every teenager in America uses social media, and yet we do not have enough evidence to conclude that it is sufficiently safe for them.”
“The question facing us is that if there is a link between the snowball of mental illness in children and the rise of social media, ‘what can parents do about it?,’” asks Smith T.
To Smith T, the addictive nature of social media is what makes it so enticing for children and teens, she said. Finely-tuned algorithms feed content having been shown to previously interest the user and keep them engaged.
While social media algorithms are designed to benignly showcase interesting content, the darker side is that the algorithm can also feed harmful content or expose the user to dangerous viral challenges.
She points to the recommendations from the surgeon general’s advisory, which encourages parents to limit their own social media usage around their children and have conversations with them about the dangers of connecting with strangers online.
THINK BEFORE YOU BUY
When deciding on whether to give your child a phone, the AAP recommends parents consider the reason their child would need a phone, the responsibility that comes with a phone and if there are other ways you can contact your child.
As summer winds down and parents begin to shop for back-to-school items, Smith T said she encourages them to consider skipping the smartphone section.
“Parents [in our community] have to come together and feel empowered to pressure each other on this and agree to hold off on the smartphones for their children and tackle this issue together,” Smith T said.
“As parents, we have the best of intentions when it comes to our children, and that is why it is so important to get the word out on this issue. We need to educate parents on these risks so that they can be better equipped to protect their children from harmful content.”
Dr. Sara Smith T is a pediatrician who practices at the Pediatric Clinic LLC in Opelika and Auburn, Alabama. She attended medical school at The University of Alabama at Birmingham, and completed her residency at Children’s Hospital of Alabama.