Impacts of technology on children’s health: a systematic review

Abstract

Objective: To identify the consequences of technology overuse in childhood. Data source: A systematic review was carried out in the electronic databases PubMed (National Library of Medicine of the National Institutes of Health) and BVS (Virtual Health Library), considering articles published from 2015 to 2020, in English, Portuguese and Spanish using the terms “Internet”, “Child” and “Growth and Development”. Data synthesis: 554 articles were found and 8 were included in the analysis. The studies’ methodological quality was assessed by the Strobe and Consort criteria, being scored from 17 to 22 points. The articles showed positive and negative factors associated with the use of technology in childhood, although most texts emphasize the harmful aspects. Excessive use of internet, games and exposure to television are associated with intellectual deficits and mental health issues, but can also enable psychosocial development. Conclusions: Preventing the use of the internet is a utopic measure ever since society makes use of technologies. The internet is associated with benefits as well as with harms. It is important to optimize the use of internet and reduce risks with the participation of parents and caregivers as moderators, and training of health professionals to better guide them.

The digital child: A cross‐sectional survey study on the access to electronic devices in paediatrics

“…General paediatricians should be added to these professionals as the scheduled visits could represent an educational moment for parents and children on the safe use of electronic devices, providing support in preventing cyberbullying. In agreement with the previous study, Ricci et al 30 highlighted the need for optimization of internet use by youth, suggesting updated training for health professionals to guide parents or caregivers as moderators in electronic device access.…”

“…Bold values are p-values < 0.05 were statistically significant. Univariate and multivariate analyses for cell-phone owning.Ricci et al30 highlighted the need for optimization of internet use by youth, suggesting updated training for health professionals to guide parents or caregivers as moderators in electronic device access. Univariate analysis for cyberbullying.…”

The predictive power of game addiction and social media addiction on adolescents' lifestyle

“…Adolescents use social media to engage in many different types of entertainment and social activities, such as playing games, leisure activities, communication, and posting pictures. However, excessive use of social media and prolonged gaming sessions can lead to various deteriorations and problems in both individual and social aspects of an adolescent's life (Ricci et al, 2023). Game and social media addiction leads adolescents to be unable to continue their daily activities, disruptions in their routines and disruptions in their lives.…”

“…To develop healthy lifestyles in adolescents, it is important that the duration, frequency, and content of the use of technological devices are under supervision (Ahmed et al, 2019). Developmental problems in adolescents, musculoskeletal system in unsupervised and addictive situations problems, physical inactivity, obesity and poor sleep quality, and can give rise to negative behaviors that impact adolescents' overall health and lifestyle (Ahmed et al, 2019; Ricci et al, 2023). Considering the current literature, social media addiction, game addiction, and lifestyle have been examined as separate variables in adolescents (Cerniglia et al, 2019; Esposito et al, 2020; Fabris et al, 2020; Hou et al, 2019; Kuss et al, 2013; Marques et al, 2020; Özgür, 2019).…”

Influencia de los medios de comunicación y redes sociales en la adopción de conductas adictivas en adolescentes

“…Ciberadicción: Uso excesivo y compulsivo de dispositivos electrónicos como celulares, tabletas y videojuegos en línea. Esto puede afectar negativamente el tiempo de estudio, el sueño y las interacciones sociales (Díaz Cárdenas et al, 2019;Ricci et al, 2022;Sampasa-Kanyinga et al, 2022).…”