„For one week, a completely different child.” Virtual autism- the danger that threatens our children
The excess using of the technologies (the personal computer, tv, tablets, smartphones) from a very young age could lead to the occurrence of autistic spectrum disorders. The psychiatric specialists talk about an increasingly common disorder among children – the virtual autism, which implies the inappropriate development of the neurological system due to lack of psycho-motor stimulation (the child receives only visual and auditory sensations). This form of autism can be easily treated if it is detected in the incipient phase.
I asked several mothers about the age that they allowed their children to intercat with the TV, personal computers, tablet, phone or other gadgets. While some mothers wrote that they are against the fact that their children have access to technology by the age of two, others have mentioned that the little ones had access to technology from the age of 8 to 9 months. Further we present some of the actual answers:
”The television- after thw age of two. Mobile phone or computer- completely against. I’ve tried, it acts negatively. When he was much younger, I played him the songs from the kindergarten and we were dancing and singing. Now he wants just to sit down and look at them like a zombie.”
„He’s 2.4 years. He watches everything. The Tv and the computer must be connected. He asks for the phone too, but I don’t give it to him.”
„From about the age of 7 or 8 months. He is fascinated by everything IT means.”
“Age – 6 years old. For a week A total excluded altogether – TV, computer, gadgets. Radical changes in behavior, sleep disorders. For one week, completely different child. Now he’s focused on drawing, books and playing. “
suntparinte.md talked with Olga Guzun, PR Manager at „SOS Autism” and mother of a high functioning autistic child, about „the autism caused by electric screens”, as it was called by the romanian psychologist Marius Zamfir.
The virtual and classic autism both include the same symptoms, therefore the difference is very small, almost imperceptible and can only be detected over time. Classic autism is a genetic disorder. The virtual one is caused by the lack of communication, the prolonged hours spent in front of the computer, the TV, etc. and it is manifested by following: the child does not react when shouted or touched, does not communicate, focuses on one thing, does not look at the interlocutor.
If, with the exclusion of videos from the child’s routine and the introduction of different activities, the autistic behaviors have improved, the child has begun to be present, is experiencing considerable and sudden progress in communication and socialization, then it is not autism itself, as in classic autim .
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