Technology today plays a pivotal role in shaping various aspects of life, including children’s health. While it has increased access to information and social networks, the impact of technology on children’s health, particularly their physical well-being, has raised significant concerns. This article delves into the various ways technology affects children’s physical health, from reducing physical activity to causing sleep disorders and other related issues.
Note: This article is part of our archival content and belongs to a previous phase of our publication. Amaranth Magazine is now a dedicated literary magazine.
Reduction in Physical Activity:
Some of the negative effects of technology on the physical health of children are the reductions in their physical activities. Video games and electronic gadgets make them do less physical exercise; this can result in obesity and health problems related to obesity.
Communication Issues:
Technology may, however, have certain negative impacts on children’s social interactions. For example, excessive use of mobile phones and social media encourage the behavior of isolation and reduces face-to-face interaction thus affecting the social and psychological development of children.
Eye and Vision Damage:
Technology is the main source of entertainment and education for most children. Overexposure to screens can lead to eye strain and problems with vision, known as “digital eye strain” or “computer vision syndrome.” Based on research, excessive use of tablets is causing serious damage to children’s eyes and, as such, is likely to cause adverse effects on the nervous and visual systems.
Sleep Disorders:
Technology disrupts children’s sleep. A late night spent watching television or playing video games makes them forget to sleep, which has several aftereffects, such as increased tiredness and irritability the next day.
Dietary Effects:
Technology can intervene in the way children eat. Spending too much time on screens makes them indulge in less physical activity and have more junk foods.
Neurological Problems:
Sedentary behavior, along with a lack of traditional play, sometimes can even trigger neurological problems in children. The excessive usage of computers, tablets, and smartphones, and watching television for a long time, especially from a close distance, can contribute to these problems.
Reduced Emotional Intelligence:
Humans are complex emotional beings. Verbal or linguistic intelligence alone will not suffice if one is going to have deep relationships with other human beings. Emotional intelligence will develop only through social interaction, and this cannot be replicated by any program or book. If children are increasingly going to use smart devices and not engage in close personal interaction, then this can seriously impede emotional development and cause problems in social adjustment as they grow older.
Addiction to Mobile Phones:
Some children have developed this habit of rushing to their mobile phones immediately after waking up and sitting on online games for hours before having their breakfast. The games can easily be addictive if the parents become incapable of controlling their children’s online gaming habits. Many researchers have come to a belief that excessive usage of mobile phones can create a sort of addiction in the minds and nerves of their users, just like addiction to drugs, video games, and the internet.
Brain Activity Impact:
Research indicates that the human brain responds to the presence of radiation. Although more research is needed to determine if radiation is capable of hampering the operations of the brain, it is assumed that the electromagnetic fields generated by cell phones are strong enough to affect the brain. The use of cell phones exposes children to these harmful fields.
Posture Problems:
Some of the influencing factors on children’s technology use include postural elements. One often sees children sitting for unnecessarily long periods of time in unnatural and very unhealthy positions while using an electronic device such as a tablet, phone, or computer. Such a form of incorrect posture can be held for so long a time that serious problems will consequently result, which may involve bone structure problems, muscular weakness, and back pain.
In conclusion, the impact of technology on children’s health has to be kept under very close scrutiny, with relevant measures adopted to manage the use of technology in a manner securing health for children and ensuring better development.
The Role of Technology in Enhancing Physical Vitality
The role that technology plays in either enhancing or decreasing children’s physical vitality is a critical aspect of technology’s impact on the children’s physical health. Physical vitality involves activities that use up bodily energy and involving muscles and the cardiovascular system, such as sports, walking, cycling, and other physical activities. Technology can be used to gear children towards increasing their physical vitality. For example, sports and interactive video games can motivate children to exercise and move around. Similarly, online fitness programs can allow children to engage in interactive physical activities that are playful.
However, excessive usage of technology and it not being well balanced will most likely diminish the children’s capacity for physical energy. In other words, the amount of hours spent in front of the screen is going to automatically take away from the number of hours a child should be spending outside. Thus, they will feel less empowered to engage in any type of physical activity.
Sleep Disorders and Technology
One of the common concerns related to the use of technology in children is sleep disorders. These sleep disorders include early wakening, problems in falling asleep, decreased quality of sleep, and frequent wakening during the night. All these factors combine to result in an excessive feeling of tiredness during the day, increased stress, problems in focusing, and learning issues. Excessive use of technology during late hours of the day or even in bed can massively affect the quality and duration of children’s sleep. The artificial light from screens is known to obstruct the production of melatonin, the sleep hormone that helps in sleeping.
Role of Technology in Increasing Obesity in Children
Childhood obesity is one of the most serious health challenges in today’s world. Technology is playing a very vital role in it. Usually, the time children spent in front of screens due to technology use increases, hence decreasing their physical activity level, resulting in weight gain and eventually obesity. Technology devices, like tablets, are associated with unhealthy eating behaviors, for instance, snacks while watching TV or playing games on such gadgets. This can result in excess intake of junk food and increase obesity.
Technology is recognized to be one of the main contributors to the alarming rise in childhood obesity, which will surely exponentially increase chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, among many more obesity-related health hazards, in the future.
References:
https://www.aap.org
https://digitalwellnesslab.org
https://www.nichd.nih.gov
