Toddlers can become addicted to screens in less than six months, said Johannesburg-based occupational therapist Juliana Freeme at the Annual Toddler Seminar, held in June this year in Sandton.
“The overuse of technology and screens can easily grow into technology or screen addiction. This is especially true for toddlers. The result is that they miss critical developmental milestones during early childhood, including physical, social, emotional, cognitive and spiritual development.
“Many children are then misdiagnosed with, for example ADHD or autism,” said Freeme. “Obesity, sleep disorders and lower grades are also the result of so-called technology addiction.”
According to Dr Marlena Kruger, founder of the TechnoLife Wise Foundation and technology addiction expert, it is essential that South Africans become aware of the neuroscientific impact of the overuse of technology. “It not only affects our health, but also our well-being and development as humans.”
For more information visit our website at www.technolifewise.org