What are smart phones doing to our kids?

At times we find that the worlds of home and work collide, and over the years that's been more common for me than it might have in other professions because wellbeing is, of course, an intrinsic part of every day for all of us, whether we are thinking about it or not. One way in which my worlds have come together of late, is as an ambassador for World Digital Detox Day (WDDD).

The non-profit organisation champions unplugging, and reclaiming balance in a hyperconnected world. In particular, they highlight the cause with a global celebration on 10th December promoting a healthier relationship with technology. This year's theme is Smartphone-Free Childhood and Smartphone-Free Life, and it's something I feel passionately about on a personal level.

A conflict of interests

In the spa world, the issue of mobile phones has been ongoing. Enjoying a day out with friends in a beautiful environment leaves many tempted to snap a selfie and post it to social media as part of the enjoyment factor - we all understand that. However, others find that the presence of smartphones in a space reserved for wellbeing is disruptive and anxiety-making.

Meanwhile, in my home life, smart phones also play conflicting roles. As a mother of three children, whose ages are eight, 13 and 17, and all of whom have been growing up in a rapidly advancing digital age, my concern when it comes to the impact of smartphones and other digital devices began with a nagging instinct that has grown ever louder over the years. I have watched, knowing that my children need to exist in a world where digitisation is an important, and often helpful, part of their lives, whilst also observing their increasing anxiety, inability to concentrate, and at times state of being completely overwhelmed by the volume of information that's thrust into their space, uninvited.

For many years, the concerns of people like me have been attributed to the overprotectiveness of anxious parents, used to the rigours of childhood in the modern age. I, like many parents however, am not unfamiliar with, or unnerved by digitisation. It plays a fundamental role in the business I have grown and nurtured for 17 years. Far from being anti-digitisation, I am wholeheartedly in its favour, but I do believe it has a time and a place, and that place is not as an anaesthetic for children.

Parenting in a digital age

Before I get into it, it's important to note that I do not criticise or judge busy and overwhelmed parents who let their kids play on their phones. We all do that - me as much as anyone else, as I try to straddle work and home life, appease children who don't want to be marked out as different from their friends, and also let them enjoy the aspects of digitisation that they enjoy, or even those that are positive for them.

I am, of course, guilty of giving them these things at times simply because I am busy and I don't have time for a screaming match. I will also give myself and others grace however, knowing that at least for a time all these things were billed as the modern equivalent of a jigsaw puzzle or a colouring book, offering children a chance to entertain themselves for a while. Now, it seems, that wasn't quite right.

I think all these things contribute to making digital devices in childhood a very tricky subject to tackle. Parenting is a Herculean task at the best of times, and in the modern world most people have very little support available. There are not enough hours in the day, there's no guidebook, and we're bombarded by an endless stream of new factors to contend with. To complicate matters, digital devices can, should, and do play a role in our collective lives, and children do need to learn to both use them and manage their use of them, so the balance is almost impossible.

Anecdotal evidence matters

At the moment I am witnessing my daughter, on the cusp of adolescence, go through some fairly onerous occupational therapy assessments for Autism, ADD, Dyslexia and Dyscalculia. Everything I read and witness, from her being completely overwhelmed with life, unable to sleep and so forth, are all heightened by the fact that her generation is addicted to its phones.

I spoke to a colleague recently whose niece is just two years old. Her parents have already taken the conscious decision to limit her screen time, not simply because they instinctively feel it's problematic, but because they have noticed immediately that her tantrums and general behaviour are resoundingly worse following use of a phone or iPad. Conversely, without those devices, she's calmer, better behaved, and ultimately happier.

That kind of anecdotal evidence is important and telling. For any parent who has thought that their concern about this could be passed off as them being over protective or a digital dinosaur - you're not.

Internet evidence on the impact of smartphones

I am not going to pretend to be a scientist, or an expert in this area - I am as overwhelmed as any other parent out there. However, I have learned over the years to trust my instincts, and the level to which digital devices invade our lives, especially during the vulnerable childhood and teenage years when young brains are still developing, is doing our young people an enormous disservice. Still, you don't have to look very far to find research, data and some fairly disconcerting correlations to start questioning the status quo.

Screens and teens: How phones broke children’s brains

In a recency article by Helen Coffey, titled 'Screens and teens: How phones broke children’s brains', and published in the Independent, spoke about the "mental health emergency" hitting young people, with horrifying data showing a correlation between the increase in smartphone use and the rise in teen suicide rates as well as anxiety disorders.

The article cited Ofcom data noted the shift to smartphones from analogue devices was: "compounded by an upsurge in digital living during pandemic lockdowns, [and] has resulted in 46 per cent of adolescents reporting they are online “almost constantly”. Some 97 per cent of children have a smartphone by the age of 12".

Signalling the concerns of parents and teachers, it also noted: "Smartphone Free Childhood (SFC) movement’s online pledge to withhold smartphones from children until they are at least 14 has attracted signatures from 37,000 parents nationwide, representing more than 56,000 children, while a quarter of British schools (8,100) have signed the pact."

Screen time and the brain

In a 2019 article from Harvard Medical School, titled Screen Time and the Brain, Pediatrician Michael Rich, is referenced. They write:

"The growing human brain is constantly building neural connections while pruning away less-used ones, and digital media use plays an active role in that process, according to Rich. Much of what happens on screen provides “impoverished” stimulation of the developing brain compared to reality, he says. Children need a diverse menu of online and offline experiences, including the chance to let their minds wander. “Boredom is the space in which creativity and imagination happen,” he says."

It goes on to talk about the impact of a good night’s sleep on brain development, and how blue light-emitting screen devices before bed can be disruptive, impacting children's ability to process and store information.

Are smartphones changing the way children’s brains work?

The Metro published a piece starkly titled, Smartphones ‘are changing the way children’s brains work’. Looking at research from a $300,000,000 US study that will track the brain development of 11,000 children over a decade they wrote: "Alarmingly children who spend more than seven hours a day on electrical devices are also showing premature thinning of the brain cortex, which typically happens later in development."

The information is couched by a statement that notes they don't know whether this is directly caused by smartphones or if it's simply correlating with phone use, and as time goes on more will be revealed. However, they note that children in the US and UK typically spend four or more hours a day on social media, and other tests have shown children who spend as much as two hours a day on streets "achieved lower scores in reasoning and language tests."

MRIs show screen time linked to lower brain development in preschoolers

A particularly chilling article on CNN titled MRIs show screen time linked to lower brain development in preschoolers, looks at a study on children ages three to five years, writes:

"found those who used screens more than the recommended one hour a day without parental involvement had lower levels of development in the brain’s white matter – an area key to the development of language, literacy and cognitive skills."

The study was published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, and anyone who has ever parented a young child will know that at that age they are absorbing so much from the world around them. Those years are a key development and growth phase.

Parents - you are not alone

There's no shortage of disconcerting information online, but to me it's the experience of parents and children themselves that is the most important. I, like many parents, do not need research to tell me that smartphones are having a negative impact on my children. All the research does is add data and evidence to something that I am aware of because I know and observe my own children.

Digitisation can be an incredible thing in so many ways, but our children (hopefully) have many years in which they can explore, experience and use these devices to enrich their lives, their knowledge, and their careers. Learning how to enjoy life without staring at a screen is valuable and incredibly precious, standing them in good stead to become happy, healthy people who know there's a life beyond their phone.

I know there is a world of initiatives out there at the moment. Smartphone-Free Childhood is rapidly gaining momentum and offers options such as simple phones for children without Internet access, so they can still call their friends or parents as needed. There is also Government guidance on limiting the use of mobile phones in school hours.

However, for parents tackling the issue at home alone, I know all too well that the challenge can feel overwhelming, and all I can say is you're not alone, it's not in your head, and your instincts matter when it comes to your kids.