A research conducted in Oxford has shown that children who are addicted to smartphones, iPads, and video games are more likely to be affected by psychosis later in life.
Psychosis is a mental condition where a person loses touch with reality and struggles to identify what is real.
Scientists in the study found that the use of smartphones and social media in childhood can lead to paranoia, delusions, and strange and bizarre thoughts in children up to the age of 23.
However, researchers believe that technology itself is not the issue. Children’s addiction to devices can make them an easy target for mental health issues.
A research published in JAMA Psychiatry by a Canadian team stated that excessive use of social media shares factors such as loneliness, bullying, and parent-child issues with parents’ mental health issues.
The study also warned that forcing children addicted to screens to reduce screen time forcefully may cause them more harm than help.
The research studied the social media habits and psychotic experiences of 2120 Canadian children born in 1997 and 1988.
It was found that even those who drastically reduced their computer usage still experienced psychotic experiences frequently in later life.