Weapons of mass distraction distress parents

Have mobile phones become villain of the piece?

They may have made people-to-people contact instantaneous and revolutionised accessibility of real-time information, but mobile phones are creating inroads into quality of life and influencing the behaviour of the youth, a researcher says.

“Parents are increasingly expressing concern over the suspected harmful effects of mobile phones, both as an electronic device and as a distractive contraption.

“Although there is no proof yet of their impact on human health, the general belief is that incessant use can have adverse effects,” she said.

Unitec Department of Computing and Information Technology Masters student Shanti Ravichandran found that prolonged use of hand-held mobile phones could case acoustic neuroma and hearing problems, apart from biological effects produced by radiation.

These could include cancers, tumours and nose bleeds, she warned.

She said the harmful effects on the environment could also be considerable.

“Some substances used in mobile phones can be harmful to the soil, which constitute E-waste, which pose a major threat to human health and the environment.

“Radiation from mobile masts cause harm to sparrows and bee colonies, tilting the natural balance,” she said.

In her preamble to the thesis, Ms Ravichandran noted that mobile technology had ushered in a new paradigm in the society.

“The youth constitute the pillars of this society.

“Family is a mini society and the budding begins at home.

“The study underscored mobile technology that intersected with the family on a daily basis and hoped for a widely acceptable outcome,” she said.

Are mobile phones good and useful for the younger members of the society or are they bad and harmful?

Ms Ravichandran posed this question to the respondents to her survey and came up with some interesting opinions.

Six out of seven parents said negative impact outweighed positive use of mobile phones. While bullying was among the negative factors, the respondents said mobile phone improved access to reliable communication, especially during emergencies.

“Some parents said there should be a minimum age limit for use of mobile phone and that 14 years was considered ideal.

“Teenagers should have only basic features on their mobile handsets and not other sophisticated features as camera, email, image and music downloading facility.

“Our young boys and girls should realise that mobile phones should be used only in emergencies and to communicate important messages to parents or other members of the family,” she said.

Parents and Caregivers were apprehensive about the ability (or willingness) of teenagers to be discreet in the use of their mobile phone.

In fact, they were of the view that youngsters were more likely to misuse the instrument, wasting time and resources.

“Many children are addicted to their mobile phones and use it extensively for texting their friends at night. Such addiction also robs them of their sleep and time with the family. Besides, use of text language erodes their language and communication skills. According to a majority of parents in the survey, schools should ban students from using mobile phones within the school campus,” Mr Ravichandran said.

She agreed, saying that there was no quick fix and that the problem would vapourise overnight.

But some parents’ suggestions were worth considering, she said.

While manufacturers should modify some of the existing features and utilities, the media should educate the public on the harmful effects of unlimited and unrestricted usage of mobile phones, she said.

Parents and Caregivers, educational institutions, teachers and elders should assume larger responsibility of understanding our youngsters and make them understand of the reason behind the increasing concern over their use of mobile phones.

“They should be encouraged to examine for themselves the impact of excessive use of these electronic instruments and the harm they cause to their health and wellbeing.

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Photo Caption:

“Mobile phones erode health and environment.” – Shanti Ravichandran