The average child spends 6.5 hours each day looking at screens – cell phones, tablets, computers and televisions. Meanwhile, boys play an average of 11.3 hours of video games a week.
If you think all of this screen time is detrimental to kids, you’re right, and a new documentary – Screenagers – takes an in-depth look at how screen time impacts children and teenagers.
On this week’s edition of Off The Grid Radio, we talk to Delaney Ruston, who edited, directed and co-produced Screenagers, which is receiving wide praise for tackling an issue that so often is ignored.
The film tells the stories of children and families who have experienced the negative effect of screen time – and who are doing something about it.
Delaney tells us:
- How screen time impacts the brain in a similar way that drugs do.
- Why children and teens are more likely to become addicted to technology than are adults.
- How video games actually change the appearance of the brain, as seen on brain scans.
- Why social media is having a damaging effect on girls’ body image.
- How screen-time addiction can ruin a child’s creativity.
Finally, Delaney shares with us a path forward – a solution that she and the teens in her family tried. Don’t miss this timely show if you’re concerned about how technology is affecting today’s generation … and society’s future!