MRI’s show devices are destroying children’s brains.

[PixelatedLunchbox]

Did anyone see this on the news? The video is five months old.

Oh well.

It's obvious from what we see in every day life though isn't it? We don't need to see brain scans to see the difference between a child loved and talked with everyday, and one thrown on devices.

I haven't seen this but can imagine that it's true

As a 44 year old woman my attention span has certainly decreased since my rise in screen usage

I read Alice in Wonderland the other week: it was tough!

I can only imagine the detriment to young brains

My kids are screen free because I think I’ve screwed up my own brain like this. I feel guilty and weak. I used to be smart and now I’m attempting to learn a language and making almost no progress.

Haven’t read it but know from experience, both teaching and as a parent, that being screen free has a very, very long list of benefits.

I can quickly tell the difference between children that have screen time and those that don’t. Even if it’s educational, it’s not necessarily beneficial.

1. It seems extremely cruel to force 3-5 year olds to undergo totally unnecessary brain MRIs. Have you ever had one? It requires lying perfectly still for 25 minutes in a tiny enclosed tube with deafeningly loud banging noises going on in all directions. Even many adults need to be sedated for it.

2. In Europe, MRIs for children are usually taboo unless there is an urgent reason and the importance of making a diagnostic test is more important than the traumatic nature of the procedure. MRIs are rarely done for headaches or injuries and only performed when there are multiple red flags for a serious condition.

3. The type of parent who would put their child through a study like this, presumably for a massive amount money, are hugely morally questionable. Were they then instructed to expose their children to as much screentime as possible only for them to undergo another totally unnecessary MRI?

4. So it comes as no surprise at all that the sort of human garbage who allow their toddlers to get MRIs for money are also parents whose children end up with shrinking white matter. It's very hard to say whether screentime played a key role in this or whether the children from these sort of families are also exposed to abuse, financial difficulties and nutritional deficits.

Obviously it's clear to everyone that screen time is not ideal, but the manipulative and performative nature of that segment glosses over a lot of key questions.

Well done you, I used to read everyday, my attention span isn't the same. I need to get back into the habit of reading everyday.

Which differences do you notice? I'm fascinated to know?

@User867536
MRIs aren’t that bad these days. The new machines are very quiet. They put noise cancelling headphones on you. There’s all kinds of foam supports so you’re floating on a cloud. A quick MRI of the brain only takes a few minutes.

You’re describing an early MRI machine from 20yrs ago.

It’s not the devices, it’s the neglect that causes the different brain function.

You can see it on their face, something changes. It's very noticeable. And obviously you can notice from how they speak

Ah.YouTube that well known peer reviewed medical journal, or the one full of conspiracy theorists, quacks and snake oil salemen?

I have not been able to find a single source online of a brain MRI taking "a few minutes"?! The point of an MRI is that it needs to take a multitude of cross-sectional images so it can build a 3D rendering of the tissues inside. I struggle to see how any sort of modern technology or AI can achieve that in the same amount of time as an Xray.

Some newer machines being quiet doesn't necessarily guarantee that those machines used on children were state of the art. As a parent, if you give consent for your child to be a guinea pig in a medical study, you certainly don't have any control over what sort of location or machine the study will be done at. You have to assume it would be a "typical" MRI, which is still loud, long and noisy.

So my point still stands that the parents taking part in the study were probably not ones who have their children's best interests at heart and therefore, not surprisingly, the children's brains showed shrinkage in white matter.

Hm I detect sarcasm here..

To your point 4 - the study looked at children with low screen time as well, as a comparator. So the differences were nothing to do with any type of parent signing their child up to this study.

I fully believe there's a cohort with low screen time but that doesn't say anything about the quality of life for that child. There are many highly abusive, religious and totalitarian parents who don't allow their children any screentime but it doesn't mean the child has a happy or good life. It still points back to a very specific type of parent who are happy to sign their children up for a medical study without them being able to give informed consent.

I agree with the PP that reduced white matter is probably due to overall neglect and trauma. It's already been well-documented that children & babies with low interaction with their caregivers, including extreme cases in orphanages, develop lower white matter.

lol an X-ray is seconds.

The times online are average total appointment time, which includes prep. The actual time in the machine is fast. I just had one done in April and the time in the machine was around 5 minutes tops. They’re just taking a snap shot of brain activity.

Look, in 2016 that’s when the MRIs for brain activity went from 30mins to 5 mins
https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2016/12/spotting-speedy-brain-activity/

It is pretty standard to still be 5 mins for that type of brain MRI even where I live in the sticks. I am talking about normal machines, you’re describing 20yrs ago.

I don’t think it’s cruel btw, there is no harm done.

How much experience do you have running this sort of research? Guessing none?

This we can absolutely agree on. Neglect is primary cause. Screens/devices are one way neglectful parents/caregivers keep children out of their way.

I appreciate that. My point was that you said that it’s not surprising that the type of parents who would sign their child up are also the ones that have children with shrinking white matter.
I was saying that not all of them do. Because all of the children in the study had the type of parents who’d sign them up, but not all of them have the brains changes mentioned. So the differences are not because of the home life you have imagined for these children.

So my point still stands that the parents taking part in the study were probably not ones who have their children's best interests at heart and therefore, not surprisingly, the children's brains showed shrinkage in white matter.

But your point would extend to any parent who signs their child up for any research study. I don’t think we can blanket assume the intentions were all bad by all parents/guardians. Some may have just wanted to know what is going on with their child and why.

I read about this recently. I think it’s shocking. There was also research to suggest Gen Z has a lower intelligence than previous generations. I said this on the pedant thread but we need to stop shoving screens in front of our kids and start them reading and handwriting again, two things that are known to boost brain activity and increase intelligence.

To me, this is yet another major disaster we are sleepwalking into - yet our eyes are wide open. Along with AI (which means people are using their brains less) and ecological disaster, we need to start effective change. We KNOW we can fix these things but we choose not to because it’s easier to just let it happen. It’s frightening.

Most professionals who work with young people and children/ Doctors, nurses, teachers, education staff, nursery nurses, social care staff etc. Anyone with many years experience: are fully aware of the difference in children this last fifteen to twenty years thanks to over excessive use of them.

It’s obvious in their learning, short concentration,their behaviour, their social skills, relationships,emotional regulation, physical skills(swiping instead of writing, manipulative skills while playing.) I could go on.

Im not talking about all children or all screen time. Im talking excessive use, instead of play, instead of learning, instead of that all important interaction with other people. There is a place for tech: Longer formed educational/learning programmes or games for short amounts of time,not shorts or you tube that consistently swipe on. Not given to babies and toddlers/young children for extended periods instead of play.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2754101

Terrifying. Honestly terrifying. And yet I feel I’m as addicted as many others. It’s crack for the brain. We’re lost I think.