How to stop your child from using a mobile phone while eating? Paediatrician explains

Most parents who claim to restrict their children's screen time admit they still offer screens to get them to eat. If children take an hour for a meal and they eat four meals a day, then their screen time would be four hours. Watching mobile screens for four hours might have severe impact on your child’s physical and mental health, especially if they are below five years. Dr Prof. A. Bindu, Department of Paediatrics and Neonatology, MES Medical College, Perinthalmanna, provides simple steps to break the habit, alongside explaining its disadvantages. 

Disadvantages
•Children watching TV or mobile phones while eating hardly recognise the taste or smell of the food. Eating food should be an enjoyable experience rather than a mechanical process. 
•Parents wouldn’t be able to gauge the child’s appetite. 
•It could lead to obesity, nutrient deficiency and digestive issues. 
•Watching screens might adversely affect their character development, behaviour and mental health.

•Children have minimal communication skills. It could even affect their social skills and speech development. 
•Tired eyes, short sight, headache and lack of sleep are some of the side effects. 
•Low academic performance and lack of linguistic skills. 

Here’s what you should do
•Avoid all kinds of screens while eating. 
•Make sure to turn meal times into enjoyable family moments. 
•Communicate constantly with the kids.
•Set a proper meal time and stick to it. 
•Present food in attractive ways. 
•Parents should be the models for their children. Try to keep your mobile phones away during meal times. 

Note
•Do not give screens to children under two years old. 
•Screen time should not exceed an hour for children between two and five years.