Help! My kids are addicted to their smartphones

Who's going to save our children from having their childhood stolen by smartphone addiction?

Go to any public eating spot during mealtimes, and one will invariably find kids fixated on their smartphones or iPads.

This observation was made by Teo Yik Ying, dean of the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health at NUS in an opinion piece on the Straits Times today.

Irony in grade-obsessed Singapore

Despite the obsession with getting good grades in Singapore, the irony is children here are spending too much time on social media feeds or online games.

• Parents are frustrated at distracted children.
• When disconnected, face withdrawal symptoms.
• Unsupervised access detrimental to development.

There is growing irrefutable evidence that internet addiction among adolescents, young children is a problem.

It starts with the parents

For a start, many parents rely on digital devices to give themselves some "downtime".

I've personally observed this at restaurants for years. We would typically get our kids to draw or chat while waiting for the food, but it's rare to see kids at other tables who are not hunched over devices.

Engaging kids take effort for sure.

And as noted by Yik Ying, many parents:

• Rely on digital devices as "aid" to occupy kids.
• Are too busy to monitor their kid's online habits.
• Are often unable to control their own mobile use.

What should we do?

Addiction to mobile devices and social media is an urgent problem that requires drastic action.

Indeed, some countries such as China have passed laws that limit screen time for kids, and restrict access to online gaming and social media.

• Children < 8yo max 40 mins/day
• Youths < 18yo no gaming, social media @ 10pm-6am

Personally, there's been more than one gathering that my kids left disappointed after other children declined to "play" as they were fixated on their devices.

I'm not saying I've got it down pet - we've needed to calibrate what we allow; we recently had to create a rule of no mobile use over dinner after its use crept in.

How do you tackle digital device usage?

PS: I gamed online excessively in my youth, so am speaking from (some) experience. But I must say today's digital lures are way more addictive!