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Unreasonable screentime threatens children's mental and physical well-being and is a significant parenting challenge today! According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 10% of youngsters over the globe suffer from mental problems. This is especially troubling, considering that childhood and adolescence are crucial periods for mental health. The brain undergoes significant growth and development during this period. Children and adolescents develop cognitive and social-emotional skills that influence their future mental health and are crucial for adopting adult roles in society.
Early adverse experiences in homes, schools, or digital places, such as exposure to violence, the mental illness of a parent or other caregiver, bullying, and poverty, raise the likelihood of developing mental illness. In addition, too much time spent in front of a screen has been related to sleep deprivation, speech delays, poor social skills, and other life issues. When screentime becomes an all-consuming pastime for youngsters, this is dubbed screen addiction.
WHAT IS UNREASONABLE SCREENTIME AND SCREEN ADDICTION?
Screen addiction describes the compulsive and excessive use of electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops. While technology has undoubtedly made our lives easier, it has also had several detrimental implications, notably regarding mental health. Children are vulnerable to screen addiction, which can harm their mental health.
Addiction symptoms include the inability to stop taking the substance or when the substance's use begins to interfere with one's life or relationships. The symptoms are identical when it comes to youngsters and screens.
HOW DOES SCREEN ADDICTION IMPACT HEALTH?
The increased risk of developing anxiety and despair is one of the most significant ways that screen addiction impacts children's mental health. Excessive screen usage is related to elevated levels of stress, anxiety, and depression in youngsters, according to research. This is due to several factors, including the social isolation that frequently results from excessive use of electronic devices, the overstimulation of the brain that occurs when children are exposed to an excessive amount of visual and auditory stimuli, and the disruption of sleep patterns that can arise when screens are used too close to bedtime.
Your child's danger of being exposed to cyberbullying and pornographic material increases as they spend more time on phones and other screens. Similarly, more time spent on social media is frequently associated with sadness and internalizing issues. In addition, spending more time in front of a screen is associated with a decrease in parental bonding, according to scientific research.
THE NEGATIVE IMPACT OF UNREASONABLE SCREENTIME ON PHYSICAL HEALTH
In addition to harming children's mental health, screen addiction can negatively impact their physical health. For instance, children who spend an excessive amount of time seated in front of screens are at risk for acquiring obesity, which is related to a variety of physical and mental health issues. In addition, excessive screen time can result in eye strain, headaches, and other physical pain, exacerbating stress and anxiety.
Reducing screen time for children can be challenging, mainly when screens are often used for entertainment and educational purposes. However, here are some practical tips for reducing screentime for children.

WHAT CAN PARENTS DO TO MANAGE SCREEN TIME FOR CHILDREN?
Parents and caregivers must actively supervise their children's screen time to reduce their excessive use of electronic devices. Establishing explicit guidelines and limits for screen use is one approach to this. For instance, parents may limit screen usage to a set number of hours per day or require screens to be turned off at least one hour before bedtime.
KEY TIPS

1. Use parental controls on the devices: Parental controls can effectively limit screentime and restrict access to certain apps or websites. Parents can use parental control features on devices or install third-party apps to help monitor and control their children's screentime.
2. Encourage youngsters to participate in activities that support their physical and mental health as another method for reducing screen addiction. This could be outdoor play, reading, artistic pursuits, or time spent with friends and family. In addition, parents may limit the amount of time their children spend in front of screens and create healthy behaviours by encouraging their children to participate in these activities.
3. Establish tech-free zones at home: Establishing tech-free zones in the home, such as the dining table or the bedroom, can aid in reducing the amount of time youngsters spend in front of devices. In addition, to foster more face-to-face engagement and family time, parents can advise youngsters to leave their devices in another room during these times.
4. Finally, parents may exhibit responsible screen use. Children typically emulate their parents' behaviour; therefore, if parents are constantly checking their phones or watching television, it is conceivable that their children will do the same. By demonstrating appropriate screen usage, parents can provide a positive example for their children and encourage the development of mental and physical health-promoting activities.

ACTION POINTS FOR ADVOCACY ORGANISATIONS
Organisations advocating for children's mental health need to develop new strategies to integrate screentime advocacy into their mandate. Similarly, strategic partnerships in the public and private sectors must be established to address the growing challenge of screen addition.
Published by Radio Nepal on 18 March 2023

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr Sunoor Verma is a global health practitioner. He has advised WHO, UNICEF, UNHCR, HUG-Geneva and Cambridge University on Strategy, Leadership Communication, Advocacy and Resource Mobilization. He has set up and led the country and regional operations for the European Centre for Minority Issues in the Balkans. He has supported track two peace processes in Macedonia, Kosovo and Sri Lanka and emergency response to the Tsunami, Avian Influenza and COVID-19. He has taught Global Health at Boston University. He has curated partnership initiatives with Macedonia, Kosovo, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, and Nepal parliamentarians. He divides his time between the foothills of the Jura Mountains in France and Buddhanilkantha in Nepal.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

1. Here is a fantastic article with a step-by-step "How to.. " Guide to screen addictions and responsible digital use by Holly Nibllet. In this article, the author discusses the advents in technology and how to control mobile screen time. How COVID-19 has changed our viewing habits, along with screentime data for children from the UK, is presented.

2. Published in 2019 is another practical guideline Digital Guidelines: Promoting Healthy Technology Use for Children by the American Psychological Association.

3. The American Academy of Pediatrics has established recommendations for children's media use. Their current recommendations advise:

■ For children under 18 months, avoid screen-based media except video chatting.

■ For children 18 months to 24 months, parents should choose high-quality programming and watch with their children.

■ For children 2 to 5, limit screentime to one hour per day of high-quality programming.

■ For children 6 and up, establish consistent limits on the time spent using media and the types of media.

4. A documentary worth watching is by Carlota Nelson, director of the documentary Brain Matters, which explores why too much screentime can harm babies and the importance of ensuring children enjoy off-screen experiences. Also, check out her engaging interview on the thinking behind this film.

TECHNOLOGY AND HEALTH
Mention 'technology and health' and discussions generally steer into the direction of various gadgets and devices that transmit data, help remote diagnostics or empower patients to better manage their chronic conditions. The use of Google glasses by surgeons worldwide is the latest in generating such excitement. This is understandable in an era of short attention spans, where we tend to choose the visibly most exciting and the one that can be touched, tried and tested. While these new inventions are thrilling, most remain in the realm of luxury for a large part of the world. What often remains invisible and under-acknowledged is information and communication technology's (ICT) 's role in transforming the landscape of broader issues such as power and access. At first instance, this may seem unrelated to health. However, these disruptions that ICT can make carry the potential to make health more accessible.
THE TRUTH BEHIND "ACCESS TO HEALTH"
'Access to health' questions are essentially questions of power imbalances, equity and human rights. Information and communication technology are essential for de- monopolising information and power and bypassing corruption. Communities where girls and women are not allowed to step out of their homes to go to schools, can now be reached in their homes through eLearning programs. Digitization of land records in feudal societies leads to major power shifts in communities. These shifts create new opportunities for people to think beyond 'survival'. When such developments are coupled with legislation that empowers citizens with the right to information, wonders can happen in many fields, including health. The potential of transparency and rapid dissemination of information that ICT brings warrants close collaboration between champions of access to health and technologists. This should not be considered relevant only in the low-income- resource-constrained setting but also in the high-income countries where health cost is skyrocketing.
INTEGRATING TECHNOLOGY THINKING INTO HEALTH THINKING
If we wish to make health accessible for more people in more places in the world, we would need to find effective ways of integrating 'technology thinking' into 'health thinking'. In the current scenario, technology is seen in service to health - a vehicle for carrying forward health services and products. The vehicle and the product are usually developed independently, and their coming together is more often coincidentally than by design. In health projects, I often see technology as an afterthought, not an integral element of the project design.
While 'inter-disciplinarity' is a term tossed around by global health gurus and policy writers, it is a mammoth task to achieve in practice. The first step towards this integrated thinking would be to create dialogue spaces that are conducive for the meetings of the Antevasins from the worlds of technology and health.
ANTEVASINS- THE NEED OF THE HOUR
Antevasin (Ante-vasin n. Sanskrit) loosely translates as 'living at the borders'. This word gained quite some popularity when used in the book "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert. Finding Antevasins in the area of Health and Technology is a challenge as both fields take pride in their super-specialists. Add to this the tendency of people to put experts in health and technology in a box. However, it is vital that we search for those who, while having their niche of expertise, can see the bigger picture and appreciate the importance of connecting with 'outsiders'.

MED@TEL. A PIONEER!
I had the privilege of attending the annual conference of the ISfTeH in Luxembourg 2013- Med@Tel. The size of the conference, the sessions, the layout and the staff that managed the event created an ambience conducive to networking beyond the customary exchange of visiting cards. To my delight, at Med@Tel, I met an impressive number of Technology Antevasins. Saddened I was to see few from my own tribe of health and medicine at the conference. This led to our proposal of a thematic partnership between the ISfTeH and the Geneva Health Forum.
Since 2006 the Geneva Health Forum (GHF) has asked hard questions, invited practical solutions, and heard many brave voices worldwide. As the world gets more complicated and health more vital, we have partnered with ISfTeH to strengthen the ICT component of the GHF 2014. We have operationalized this by dedicating a complete submission track to Innovation and technology at the next edition of the GHF in 2014.
CONTENT IS KING
Over the last four editions of the forum, we have tried to ensure that partners appreciate the value proposition of the Geneva Health Forum and commit to contributing to its content. The fruits of these efforts were clearly visible in the fourth edition in 2012. This has also enhanced the credibility of the GHF as a forum where 'Content is King'. Gradually partners have come to value the unique dialogue and networking opportunities the GHF provides. Many partners have also found value in getting access to the views from the frontlines that the GHF channels, which may show trends that may initially be invisible to policymakers in Geneva.
We are confident in the robustness of the product that we are bringing forward. We feel the content will prevail over packaging in a fast-moving world of multiple and non- stop choices. The global health community has no more patience for predictable, self-asserting and mind-numbing meetings, conferences and sessions. It is time to raise the bar and bring back discussions and debates that make health more powerful.
NOT FOR FENCE-SITTERS
The Geneva Health Forum is not meant to attract spinners and fence-sitters. It is a forum of Antevasins from across disciplines that can see beyond their own spheres of expertise, excellence and influence. It is a forum that brings together believers of interdependence over independence. I earnestly hope that members of the ISfTeH will participate and infuse the discussions at GHF2014. We know that without ICT, health initiatives cannot scale. At the same time, we will encourage health experts to engage at your fora and bring their perspectives to challenges and possible solutions to advance health and well-being. I invite you to visit the website of the GHF. I earnestly hope the partnership between ISfTeH and the GHF will lead to new disruptions that will make health more powerful.
I wish you good health!
Sincerely yours,
Dr. Sunoor Verma, MD MS
Executive Director

Geneva Health Forum
Editorial by
Dr. Sunoor Verma, Executive Director of the Geneva Health Forum published in the October 2013 Newsletter of the ISfTeH
Dear Reader,
As I indicated last year, from time to time, I will allow a member of our community to use this space to share their thoughts with everyone. Dr Sunoor Verma, Executive Director of the Geneva Health Forum, is the first to take advantage of this, with his piece on the people who straddle the worlds of health and technology as we do. The ISfTeH signed a memorandum of understanding with the Geneva Health Forum this summer. We all look forward to a mutually beneficial collaboration with the GHF.
Sincerely,
Prof. S. Yunkap Kwankam
Executive Director, ISfTeH