Sociale

The phone before the age of 4 stops the child's development, psychologists say

The phone before the age of 4 stops the child's development, psychologists

The phone or tablet has become the close "friend" of many children, but using them for hours is affecting the development of the little ones. Specialists find that electronic devices are making children withdrawn, distracted or with communication difficulties.

The problems have become more pronounced after the Covid-19 pandemic. Therefore, this year, the focus of specialists in the month of awareness for autism spectrum disorders is on virtual autism that is created by long exposure to the phone, tablet or television.

On TV you see colors, noises, sounds, not concrete things to understand. If there is a predisposition to a spectrum disorder, we emphasize this more," say the psychologists.

"A child is still neurologically underdeveloped, it is difficult for him to understand what is being said on the screen. Until the age of 3 and a half 4 until his neurons are mature enough not to be exposed to screens,” they add.

Worldwide, the number of children with autism spectrum disorders has increased. If two years ago, 1 in 44 children were diagnosed with this disorder, now the number has decreased to 1 in 36. The causes of the appearance of autism are still unknown, but according to the responsible doctors, they are genetic factors combined with environmental factors.