VICTORIA -- They are constantly sending messages and they don't stop when the lights go out. Dr. Peter Polos of JFK Medical Centre in New Jersey surveyed 40 kids and teens and found in an evening anywhere from thirty to one-hundred texts flew out of their phones.
Although the sample was small, late night texting has the potential to turn into a big problem during the day. In addition to general fatigue, kids who texted late were more likely to say they suffered from anxiety, depression, A-D-H-D and learning difficulties.
"The impact of this over time is cumulative sleep debt which s very difficult to pay back" says Polos.
More than three quarters said they had trouble getting to sleep at night and many said they were awakened by text in the middle of the night.
Oak Bay High School Principal Dave Thomson says it's up to adults to teach kids how to be responsible with their usage.
"Ultimately we have to work with kids, teach them, help them make the right decisions and acknowledge the mistake we make with the same technology and kids will grow from that I think."
And if that doesn't work it may be time for drastic measures says Polos.
"Unless you take the cell phone away from the child they are really able to do whatever they want whenever they want"
But if healthy kids is what we want, it may be time to trade in the lol's for some zzzzz's.
No comments:
Post a Comment