Digital Time-Offs
Take regular digital time-offs, docs tell families
MUMBAI: As the clock strikes seven in the
evenings, everyone in the Joshi household in Malad, switches off their mobiles,
laptops and tablets and places it in a basket on the side table.
The family of four, now mandatorily gathers i
n the living room, and talks to each other for an hour. The exercise is a part
of their weekly ‘digital detox’, advised to them by a psychiatrist.
Doctors in the city are increasingly asking
both children and adults to concertedly switch off their mobile phones, laptops
and tablets for a stipulated amount of time, as increase in time spend on
gadgets has becoming pressing concern for them.
“There has been a drastic increase in the
amount of time both children and adults spend on online, which is taking away
the real time interaction within family members,” said Dr Pervin Dadachanji ,
child and adolescent psychiatrist, child development centre UMEED, Parel.
What is even more worrying, she added is that
families are misconstruing the time they spend watching television together as
‘family time’, she added.
“Parents who find their children a handful,
find it easier to give them a phone or a tablet to keep them engaged,” said Dr
Henal Shah, professor at the department of psychiatry at BYL Nair Hospital,
Mumbai Central.
In 2016, The American Association of
Paediatrics (AAP) announced new recommendations for children’s media use. “For
children aged six and older, parents must ‘place consistent limits on the time
spent using media, and the types of media, and make sure media does not take
the place of adequate sleep, physical activity and other behaviours essential
to health,” warned doctors from AAP.
However, Dr Kersi Chavda, consultant
psychiatrist at PD Hinduja Hospital, Mahim, said it is a challenge to ensure
that parents become good role models if they want their child’s behaviour to
change. “Very often while counselling a child, I learn that parents expect the
child to cut down on their digital time, while they continue to spend time on
it on the pretext of work,” said Dr Chavda.
Meanwhile, psychiatrists said that rise in
screen time exacerbates symptoms for people who have social anxiety and mild to
severe forms of autism. Dr Milan Balakrishnan, psychiatrist, Juno Clinic, Khar,
recounted a case, where parents had brought their 14-year-old fourteen daughter
for treatment for her phone addiction. “She spent eight to ten hours a day on
the phone either on social networking sites or playing games,” Dr Balakrishnan
said.
On further examination, he found that the
phone addition was masking a larger psychological problem of social anxiety.
“Spending time on the phone was a way of coping with her anxiety. It was escape
from the real world,” Dr Balakrishnan said.
Doctors said the process to get children and
parents off screens is a gradual process. “No addiction can be reduced
drastically overnight. One needs to start with reducing screen time from a few
minutes to an hour, over a period of days,” said Dr Chavda.
Source | Hinudstan Times | 20 November 2017
Regards
Pralhad
Jadhav
Senior Manager @
Knowledge Repository
Khaitan &
Co
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