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It has become relatively challenging to keep a child away from the phone. For most teens, smartphones are the biggest addiction. The smartphone addiction of today’s generation is rapidly increasing with time. Experts say that social media and phones have a negative impact on children. Furthermore, limiting their screen time is relatively challenging because, at this age, they want to explore the world as much as they can. So, how should we deal with their smartphone addiction, and how to convert it into responsible online behavior? Here is how you can deal with it and also make things better for your children.
How to make your children get off the phone?
Mobile phones and other gadgets have many uses, but nothing is good when it exceeds the limit. Teens invite a lot of trouble when they stay on their phones for a long time, although unintentionally.
What are the side effects of cell phone addiction on teenagers?
Games, social media platforms, etc., are mainly behind the excessive cellphone addiction in children. So, below are some of the potential dangers that come with mobile addiction.
1. Adult content
There is a lot of inappropriate content on the Internet. Kids want to explore, and there are chances that they might come across these things. Many online chatting and dating apps mislead teenagers with adult content. They also use adult language, which is not suitable for teens.2
2. Cyber frauds
The more someone spends time on phones, the more prone they become to cyber fraud. Teenagers nowadays are not aware that excessive surfing risks their online life. There are many phishing sites, hackers, online predators, and bullies that are rampant on the Internet, waiting for innocent victims.
3. Social media platforms
It is one of the biggest reasons why teenagers excessively use their phones. Social media apps affect children adversely. Additional use of social media creates a sense of false identity. With time, teens start to depend on unknown friends, and they even seek their validations and approvals. Not only that, but small things start stressing them, like not getting enough likes on the photos they post.
4. Lazy lifestyle
Because teenagers are so engrossed in their phones, they are becoming lazy day by day. It impacts their health negatively. Their eyesight starts weakening, they put on weight, their posture worsens, and this is just the tip of the physical issues’ iceberg.
5. No social interests
Because kids are spending all their time on cell phones, their interest in sports and other social activities decreases; eventually, they stop spending time with their family and their real-life friends. If we look at the bigger picture, they become adults who lack the basic street-smarts and social skills.
6. Deteriorating mental health
Experts say that excessive screen time alters the responsive skills of a person. Our brain is not built to concentrate on the screen for long hours. In fact, it is built to engage in real-life events and situations. All in all, a teen’s mental and emotional health deteriorates when they spend a lot of time on screens.
How to limit their phone usage?
It is challenging to limit their phone usage, but some methods will motivate them to reduce these things.
1. Set strict boundaries
Because their phones are their weaknesses, it will be best to set some boundaries to control them. For instance, you can set the phone usage rules for every family member in the house. Also, you can create phone-free zones in the home. You can come up with rules like no phone in washrooms and no phones while eating or while going to bed.
2. Try to be their role models.
If you want to limit your screen time, it is essential for you also to limit your screen time. You need to talk to your kids about how the smartphone is dangerous for them if they use it excessively. All in all, you need to set the right example for them to fight cellphone addiction.
Transparent communication will always have positive results. If you are imposing rules, you need to let your kids know the reasons behind them. If you communicate properly and become familiar with the bad side of cellphone addiction, they will automatically start withdrawing themselves from it.
3. Support their hobbies
One of the best ways to combat their cellphone addiction is to support their offline interests and come up with more ideas that excite them. If they love playing sports, you need to encourage them, because they need your support more than anybody. Other than that, you can also come up with productive ways by which the whole family can spend time together by doing something while staying away from smartphones.
4. Use parental control tools like Avosmart.
After enforcing all these steps, it is ideal to have parental control software like Avosmart that will always back you up. Safeguarding your child with such a tool is a perfect thing to do. With Avosmart, you can put time limits on apps and websites. You can also block the websites, YouTube channels, and apps that you think are not suitable for your children. Furthermore, it will provide you with in-detail reports and insights into their social media activities. All in all, it will indirectly reduce their screen time and protect them from the dangers lurking online.