The difficult journey of quitting game and social media addiction - Part 3: Quitting or causing addiction in children?

Addiction to games and social media can easily relapse if children are not supported by a healthy environment, with families playing the most critical role in helping them break free from phone dependency. Dr. Nguyễn Thành Long from the Institute of Mental Health at Bạch Mai Hospital in Hanoi emphasizes that the best way to protect children is to prevent them from becoming addicted in the first place by limiting their early exposure to phones.

According to medical health guidelines, adult screen time should not exceed two hours per day, and children require even stricter limitations. However, in today's digital lifestyle, many parents struggle to manage their own and their children's screen time effectively. It is common to see parents engrossed in their phones while their children are nearby, sometimes even mimicking their behavior.

“

Addiction to games and social media is highly likely to recur if there is no healthy environment for children. In this, the family plays the most essential role in helping children escape phone dependency.

This trend is a growing concern for many, including retired official Trần Văn Chương from Hà Đông, Hanoi. He laments that his grandchildren, provided with smartphones for communication and schoolwork, now spend all their free time playing games and browsing social media, neglecting their studies and books. His son, also constantly on his phone, rarely interacts with his children, while his daughter-in-law, an online seller, spends her entire day on her phone for work and continues into the evening.

“

Don't let children have access to phones too early, don't let it reach the point of addiction; that is the best way to protect children.

Mr. Chương has repeatedly tried to address this issue with his children, but they remain unchanged. He worries about his younger grandchildren's academic future. The situation is mirrored in his neighborhood, where busy parents leave their children to their own devices, literally. Two boys of similar age, whose parents work long hours, spend their afternoons glued to their phones instead of studying or even sleeping. Mr. Chương noted that they couldn't recall simple math formulas they had learned the previous year.

Despite the challenges, some parents are successfully detaching their children from phones. Nguyễn Lan Hương, a busy mother in Cầu Giấy, Hanoi, who also runs an online business requiring constant phone use, has implemented strict measures. While her children initially demanded phone access, she enforced a firm approach to limit their usage.

“

I have reminded the children's parents many times, they haven't changed anything, they also browse the internet all day. I worry the two younger ones won't be able to get into university.