Smartphone bans for children
Q : I think my brother’s kids, 10 and 12, are addicted to their smartphones. My brother says he can’t take away the phones because that’s how he and his wife keep track of them and how the kids stay connected to their friends. I think he should confiscate them. It affects how the kids interact with the family. What do you think? — Arlene H., Detroit
A: We think you’ve identified a growing problem worldwide: unsupervised smartphone use by pre-teens (and teens) is being flagged for creating psychosocial developmental problems, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
A doctor in Colorado started a movement/website called Parents Against Underage Smartphones (PAUS) when he saw what was happening to his two pre-teen sons after they received smartphones. His once social and active kids became reclusive and, he said, acted like crack addicts when he took away their phones.
He then found that an estimated 13 million to 15 million kids are on devices without any content restrictions. On his website, he’s posted some of the most gut-wrenching stories about what that can lead to: there are tales of young kids who were able to get their hands on drugs online and then overdosed; stories of kids being victimized and sexually preyed upon and kids who find ways around blocking apps so offlimits pornography sites become accessible; and then there’s sexting and cyber-bullying through social (maybe it should be called anti-social) media.
Now PAUS is pushing for a state (Colorado) ballot initiative that would curb the sales of smartphones to children under the age of 13. And the movement is spreading around the globe: the Irish Sun reports that in Ireland there’s the “Internet Access for Minors Bill 2017” that would allow parents to be fined if their child 14 or younger uses an internet-enabled device unsupervised.
So, Arlene, tell your brother that pre-teen kids should be tightly supervised for smartphone usage. Used improperly, they can ruin lives, just like drugs or alcohol.
Q : For the past three months I have been trying to do a daily combination of aerobic and strength-training exercise, but sometimes I just get plain weary. Shouldn’t I be getting stronger, not more worn out, from exercising regularly? — Charlene G., Savannah, Ga.
A: It’s terrific that you have started such a health-boosting workout routine. A combination of moderate endurance (aerobic) exercise for at least 30 minutes, five days a week — occasionally upping the intensity — combined with regular stretching and two days a week of strength training is guaranteed to provide most folks with a younger RealAge (at age 55, men can achieve a RealAge that’s 8.1 years younger than a typical guy, and women, like you Charlene, can take off nine years). A good exercise routine is the best way to prevent chronic diseases like diabetes and cardiovascular problems.
However, you can end up with less endurance and get worn out if you don’t build in appropriate recovery time between your strength-training sessions and between strength training and aerobic workouts.
That’s the news from a study in the journal of Sports Medicine. Australian researchers found that “the physiological stress caused by a typical resistance-training bout of 40 to 60 minutes can continue for several days post-exercise, as opposed to a full recovery within 24 hours following a typical endurance-training bout.”
So always put 24 hours between your aerobic workouts, or between a strength-building workout and an aerobic workout. Limit strength building (at least at first) to 20 to 25 minutes, and put at least 48 hours between strength-building routines. And when doing strengthbuilding exercises, rest for a full minute after each one to maximize muscle building.
If you follow this advice and make sure to get plenty of lean protein, eat seven to nine servings of fresh produce and only 100 per cent whole grains daily, you should find you have ever-increasing strength, focus and energy.