Autism Soccer: Is Your Child a Screen Addict?

Nowadays, TV and the internet are alternatives to make life easier. But, these can bring some risks along to our health and to our children's.

Screens are part of our everyday lives. It’s quite common to have one or some of those at home and also at the office; especially for people who have a direct contact with screens to do their job, like engineers, movie critics, etc. In this way, it’s not a problem, but it is when it comes to children. Nowadays, people have access to all kinds of information through cable TV, computers, and cell phone screens because of the internet, and this might turn into a big problem when it comes to kids at an early age.

It’s known that more than 60% of the population spend a good chunk of their day using screens, apart from their formal obligations, such as work or studies, which make this technological tool one the preferred choices to spend free time. You, as a parent, need to spot the signs of screen addiction before it becomes a severe problem. But how can you identify this as a problem? We’re here to help you with that!

What’s a screen addiction?

Although screen addiction is not recognized yet, it's important for you to know exactly what it is. This is defined as the unnecessary hours spent using screens, avoiding obligations that people normally have. For adults, these hours count on work time; for children, they count on the time they spend doing academic tasks. Normally, children should spend less than 2 hours a day in front of a screen. Also, it’s important to define something early on: most people think screens are just the ones from a computer or a smart device like a tablet or smartphone but TV units are in this category too, which also cause addiction.

Signs of screen addiction:

Anxiety without screens.
Compulsive behavior (gaming, betting, social, etc.)
Dishonest behavior: Mostly negation of being addicted to a screen.
Self-imposed isolation. Only interacting through screens.
Sleeping problems, such as frequent nightmares.
Frequent headaches and eye soreness.
Carpal tunnel syndrome and other conditions related to overuse of computers.

Your children count on you to know better how to deal with problems that affect them. Be aware of the signs that might indicate a screen addiction on your child and be aware of the things you need to do to fight against it. One of the best alternatives is to introduce them to sports, such as the ones that Autism Soccer offers. It’s important for them to have a proper activity in order to reach their goals and avoid those screen addiction problems. Encourage them to spend time doing other enjoyable things with the help of the right people. Contact them now!