"I thought: Wait a minute, I can't just start a 16-year-old on antidepressants,' says Chatterjee. He wanted to understand what was going on in the boy's life. They talked for a while, and Chatterjee asked him about his screen use, which turned out to be high. I said: I think your screen use, particularly in the evenings, might be impacting your mental wellbeing.'"
"Chatterjee believes that the widespread adoption of screens into our children's lives is the most urgent public health issue of our time. He was never very political, he says. He is the affable host of a successful health podcast, Feel Better, Live More, and his books strike an optimistic, inspiring tone but on this issue he is passionate, his frustration obvious. I think successive governments have been very weak here, and they are failing a whole generation of children."
A GP treated a 16-year-old who had attempted self-harm and who had been recommended antidepressants by hospital staff; the GP explored lifestyle factors and found high evening screen use. The GP implemented a graduated routine that turned off digital devices and social media an hour before bed, extended over six weeks, and monitored progress. Within two months the adolescent no longer required appointments and later showed increased social engagement and new activities. The GP views widespread children's screen adoption as an urgent public health issue and criticizes government inaction while noting some jurisdictions have introduced restrictions.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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