Effects of Technology on Children

In today’s world Technology is everywhere. We use computers for almost everything in everyday life, including “babysitting” our children. Computers can have both positive and negative effects on children, while some of the negative effects on health and development are unseen. As adults, we understand the physical world around us and the concepts inside computer programs. Children, on the other hand, need to learn this with traditional play and outdoor activities. Adults, over about 30, know the world without computers. Our younger generations are starting to use computers at very a young age.

They are maturing in a world of instant answers and satisfaction. The first of many issues is obesity. Computers are contributing to our growing epidemic of childhood obesity. Children no longer go out and entertain themselves with physical activities, like riding bicycles, playing outdoors with friends and sports. They are now leading more sedentary lives watching television, playing gaming systems, texting on phones, or socializing on the internet.

In fact, “the reported screen time varied greatly by age, however, ranging from 2 to 3 hours per day for ages 2 to 7, to nearly 6 hours per day for ages 8 to 13”. (Subrahmanyam, Kraut, Greenfield, Gross