Dear Parent, July 15th we celebrate planet Day without Cell Phone. This is simply a good chance to turn off the smartphone for the kid and for a long time together, in the household group, consider what Prof. Manfred Spitzer said:
“Every day without a smartphone is simply a good day. The minute you give your kid a phone, you will fight all day – don't usage it here, don't usage it now, etc. Therefore, my recommendations to parents are specified – until the kid is thirteen, fourteen – no smartphone. erstwhile more – the longer you can postpone this moment, the better for your child. There is no another answer.’
Manfred Spitzer is simply a world-renowned expert: psychiatrist, psychologist, and neurodydactic. I urge 3 of his books: "Smartphone outbreak. hazard to health, education and society", ‘Cyberchores. How digital life ruins our health” and ‘Digital dementia. How we deprive ourselves and our children”.
Shortsightedness, overweight, sleep disturbances, posture defects, prediabetes, traffic accidents – these are just any of the risks for your kid associated with excessive telephone use.
In addition to physical problems, investigation besides indicates the danger to children's intellectual health: anxiety, depression (e.g. self-harm, thoughts and suicide attempts), stress, disturbance of attention, increased aggressiveness and reduced capacity for empathy towards parents and friends.
Importantly, a smartphone harms the improvement of a kid not only erstwhile he uses it, but besides erstwhile a smartphone is utilized by his parent or father while doing parental duties.
Although this may seem shocking, the usage of a smartphone depends on alcohol, cigarettes, sugar, and even cocaine. Children become addicted faster and stronger than adults, and the effects of this addiction are far more dangerous, harmful.
What does a kid request for appropriate development? Fortunately, we have known the answer to that question for a long time. It needs millions of words spoken to it and tens of thousands of games with parents – stacking blocks, painting pictures, reading together, singing songs, playing ball.
Technically, all parents should know that.
Why don't they do it in practice?
"We were far besides naive and blinded by what was achieved by the largest technology companies, and what in practice meant disrupting the teaching process. I hope that we will halt handing out tablets to first graders and give them pencils and teach them to compose letters" - announced Danish Minister for Children and Education Mattias Tesfaye in February 2024.
On the dependence of children on screens, the biggest gain is large business, e.g. technology corporations: Tik Tok, Meta (Facebook, Instagram), Google (YouTube); smartphone manufacturers: Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi; telecommunications companies: Play, Orange, Plus, T-Mobile.
The civilian Affairs Institute has for years been calling on the government to introduce a nationwide ban on mobile phones in schools. We besides urge the creation of Digital Cork Fund, which should be state-sponsored funds, sourced from corporations earning on kid dependence on screens. Money from this origin should be utilized in its entirety to prevent digital hygiene and address cyber-disease problems.
Steve Jobs, co-writer of the iPhone, followed the iron regulation of drug dealers: “Never usage your own product, due to the fact that you will end up like your customers”. In an interview with the fresh York Times Jobs said his kids had never utilized an iPad before. "In our home, we restrict children's access to modern technology".
Dear parent,
For years, experts have pointed out that asking children who are not yet capable of self-control, for discipline erstwhile utilizing smartphones and social media, which have been designed as addictive, makes police parents. Additionally, it is simply a origin of frustration for everyone in the household due to the fact that it is impossible.
Therefore, I encourage you to make the planet Day without a Cell telephone an chance for you and your kid to have fun, reflection and change.
Rafał Górski
Chairman of the Management Board
Institute of civilian Affairs
Citizens' run Save the Children!
