Listen
Listen to this podcast or watch the video. CLICK HERE
Transcript
Top Takeaways
- Digital dementia is dementia like symptoms in adolescents associated from the overstimulation of technology combined with poor lifestyle habits.
- Digital dementia’s symptoms are short-term memory loss and memory recall, acting out, poor motivation, and less motivation to get outside.
- Too much screen time is resulting in changes in the brain.
- Early signs of digital dementia are called tech fatigue with symptoms of “tech posture”, spending hours on a device without moving, instant changes in behavior, and anxiety associated with being away from technology.
- You can actually see less activity and shrinkage in the part of the brain called the hippocampus, responsible for memory, in people who spend extended periods of time on their tech devices.
- This is especially due to the fact that exercise stimulates the hippocampus, and those who spend a great deal of timeon devicesexercise much less frequently.
- Kids are as addicted to their digital devices as they would be to a drug.
- In prehistoric days our body was wired to notice movements and lights in our environment to protect itself, releasing dopamine. Technology is causing the body to react in similar ways.
- In an addiction brain, our prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that helps us make socially appropriate decisions, plans, set goals, and be healthy, gets greatly inhibited, leading to poor behavior to seek dopamine hits.
- Artificial Blue light from technology can have an impact on our natural circadian rhythm resulting in insomnia.
- A couple of ways to safeguard against blue light is to stop the use of your devices at least an hour before bed, and to where blue blocking glasses,
- Several ways to safeguard our brain from digital dementia is to practice proper alert posture, using a posture break for 30 seconds every hour while on a device, having more bouts of movement throughout the day, and to set 3 digital detoxdoses a day, where no one is on a tech device.
- Only 2 hours per day is a safe range for tech time.
- It is important to create boundaries for yourself and your child when it comes to the amount of device use.
- To create more successful digital detox doses, make fun plans during these times so that every family member is happy to take them.
- Register for Dr. Krista Burns Digital Dementia Summit where 60+ brain experts discuss ways to prevent and reverse digital dementia. Click here!
- Learn more about American Posture Institute at Americanpostureinstitute.com
Wendy Myers: Hi, everyone. Welcome to the Myers Detox podcast. My name is Wendy Myers, and on this show, we talk about everything related to detoxification, including digital detoxing or detoxing from our cell phones, television, and computers, and screen time, we’re all guilty of it, we all love our phones for the most part and spend way too much time on it, about what is a healthy limit, how much screen time should we be having every day, how are screens changing the way our children’s brains develop and form, are we creating a nation of addicts with allowing two-year-olds to have screen time?
Wendy Myers: I answer all these questions and more with our guest today, Krista Burns, who is the host of the upcoming Digital Dementia Summit that is so, so important, so timely, because I know so many of us mothers out there or as parents may be really concerned about how much screen time we’re allowing our children to have and about creating boundaries around that and what are some good guidelines, what does the research say? So, we talk about that and more in today’s show.
Wendy Myers: So, we talk about things related to how 95% of children on medications for ADHD, or hyperactivity disorder, do not meet the recommended guidelines for adequate exercise, sleep, or nutrition, and how so many kids that have behavioral issues, it could be from too much screen time, the quality of the things that they’re watching while they’re on their phones and on screens, and how reducing screen time in children can improve their behavior. I saw this with my daughter, Winter, when I drastically reduced her screen time. It was amazing, the transformation.
Wendy Myers: Also, how large numbers of adolescents today are experiencing signs of dementia, symptoms that have been formerly only seen in older adults. This is very, very scary. This is something we have to pay attention to. Lots of new stories on CNN and in the papers, but really maybe the information is on the thin side, maybe people aren’t getting the whole story, the amount of information they need to shock them into changing their behavior, not only for themselves, but for their children and their families. We’ll also talk about the top three tips you can implement today to reduce screen time of the whole family and guidelines for daily screen time limits, how many hours of screen time per day is safe for adults and children. So, really, really good show today with Dr. Krista Burns.
Wendy Myers: I know some of you guys listening are concerned about heavy metal detox, concerned about how heavy metals are impacting your health and are they causing your symptoms of brain fog, fatigue, and resistant weight loss. Well, I created a quiz at HeavyMetalsQuiz.com. It will take two minutes. After answering these questions, you can get an assessment of the relative levels of heavy metals you may have in your body and the next steps to take. After taking the quiz, you get a free video series that talks about what you can do to detox your body and safely remove heavy metals from your body. Just go to HeavyMetalsQuiz.com and take it.
Wendy Myers: Our guest today, Dr. Krista Burns, is founder of the American Posture Institute, is a certified postural neurologist, certified posture expert, doctor of health administration, and doctor of chiropractic. She is a highly sought after media expert and speaker. Author the textbook The Posture Principles, Dr. Krista’s work has been featured on FOX News and Global Women Magazine. She’s been a keynote presenter at prestigious conferences, such as TED X and the World Congress of Neurology. Through her teachings at the American Posture Institute, Dr. Krista has impacted thousands of patients and she’s the leading or she is leading the charge in exposing the truth of digital dementia. You can learn more about her and her work at the AmericanPostureInstitute.com and join her totally free series on digital dementia at TheDigitalDementiaSummit.com.
Wendy Myers: Krista, thank you so much for coming on the show.
Krista Burns: Thanks. I’m so happy to be here. I’m really excited to connect with your audience today.
Wendy Myers: So, we’re going to talk about a really, really important subject, and it is digital dementia. So, this is something that’s affecting so many people. Our young people today, their brains are being impacted by the amount of screen time that they are watching. So, can you talk a little about what exactly is digital dementia?
Krista Burns: Yeah. I’m glad that we’re having this conversation because I know we have a lot of parents and moms who are listening in, and this is really going to be applicable to all of our moms raising children in the digital age. So, what digital dementia is is dementia-like symptoms in adolescence associated with an over-stimulation of technology combined with poor lifestyle habits. Now, the second we said the word “Dementia,” what you were probably picturing in your head was an older person later in life who is having problems remembering.
Krista Burns: Now, what’s interesting about digital dementia is we’re not talking about Alzheimer’s. What we’re talking about is short-term memory loss and hard memory recall in as young as adolescents, so we’re talking eight-year-olds, nine-year-olds, 10-year-olds. So, we’re actually seeing that spending too much time on screens is now resulting in brain changes. We’re actually able to analyze and view this on brain scans. So, our conversation today, then, is bringing awareness to this because this is a new … This is new. This is a whole new generation that’s being born into this world of technology, right? So, these aren’t symptoms we’ve had in the past. This is new, based upon a changing environment in which we now live. So, we’re going to have a conversation about how to evaluate for signs and symptoms associated with this, but also how to safeguard your child’s brain.
Wendy Myers: So, what are some of those signs and symptoms that kids are getting too much screen time are moving into digital dementia?
Krista Burns: Absolutely. So, digital dementia, once it gets to that point, is going to result in symptoms like ADHD. We see a lot of poor memory recall, we see acting out, so behavior changes. For example, if your child suddenly has a behavior change and you’re not sure what it is, it could be too much time on devices. There’s also poor motivation, lethargy, lack of motivation to get out and connect in the real world, and more motivation to stay attached to those devices. Then, how we can start to see this before it gets to this point is what’s called tech fatigue.
Krista Burns: So, some signs and indications of tech fatigue means that we’re fatiguing out our brains from too much tech time, and we want to see these indications before it gets worse and impacts brain function, is you’ll notice posture, for one, so that tech neck posture that we see so commonly in our society now. So, for example, if I’m holding my device here and I’m looking down, I’m rounding my shoulders and dropping my head forward, that tech neck posture is an indication of tech fatigue. Another indication is spending hours on your device without moving. So, for example, you sit on the couch to watch Netflix and hours can pass and you’ve haven’t gotten up and done any sort of movement or us adults are guilty, too, of sitting down to do work and hours can pass by and we haven’t even gotten up out of our chairs. So, poor posture, tech neck posture, sedentary lifestyle, and then, also, those instant changes in behavior.
Krista Burns: So, for example, if you wanted to go outside and play with your children and you ask them to get off their devices, and if you see them being hesitant or if you see that their anxious without their device … For example, if they left their phone inside, would they feel anxious not having it with them? These are going to be signs of tech fatigue that then can lead to digital dementia. So, if you’re seeing any of those three signs now, this is a great conversation that we’re having today so we can start having some prevention strategies in place.
Wendy Myers: Yeah. When kids are watching these screens and their iPads for hours and hours, they’re not outside getting exercise also that also stimulates their brain. That’s one of the … My biggest concern with my child is that I dramatically limited screen time for my daughter, Winter, who’s nine, but I had a period when I was really stressed and working a lot, and I let her watch the iPad. I have a lot of guilt about that, but … She spent a lot of time doing that and not playing, and when we were kids, when we got home from school, we went outside and were riding our bike and playing and playing sports, and kids today, a big reason that they’re overweight, so many children are overweight, is just lack of exercise because they’re at home watching screens, playing video games, watching movies, et cetera.
Krista Burns: Yeah. What’s so interesting about that conversation is where we’re seeing changes in brain function, there’s a part of your brain called the hippocampus, which is responsible for memory, and we’re seeing that that’s being depleted or even shrinkage when we’re spending too much time on screens, we’re talking seven hours plus per day, whereas what we’re also seeing from research is that when you’re outside and you’re exercising, that stimulates the hippocampus. So, not only are they not exercising, so we’re not getting that extra stimulation to our part of our brain that controls memory, but we’re also being sedentary, which is also a double factor, which is preventing us from having good memory recall and can lead to these demential-like symptoms early on in life.
Wendy Myers: So, exactly how does excessive screen time and the poor lifestyle habits in combination impact brain function? So, what else is going on in the brain? I know addiction is a concern because it’s just … We’re watching the screens, a lot of dopamine is being released. It’s just changing how the brain perceives things and functions.
Krista Burns: Yeah. Dopamine is an amazing thing. Dopamine is a hormone that our body releases as a reward cycle. Now, some examples of when we experience dopamine on a positive level is when we’re exercising, we get a dopamine rush, but also on the negative way that we get dopamine is through addictions, so whether it’s a sugar addiction, whether it’s an alcohol addiction, or even worse, a drug addiction. So, what we’re seeing with our digital devices is that children are as addicted to their devices as they could be to a drug. So, we get that dopamine rush as soon as we grab our cellphone, and the reason being is because your brain is wired for survival.
Krista Burns: So, if you think to prehistoric days, if we saw a flashing light or something moving, our bodies are designed, our brains are wired to instantly look at whatever’s moving in our environment, and that’s a safety precaution. So, it’s wired for survival because in prehistoric days, if we saw something running by, we would want to see that so we could determine if we were safe in our environment. Now, we don’t have those threats that we used to have, but we have the same brain, and our brain activates every time we see a different trigger, and so your devices are designed to keep you on, so they’re constantly flashing a light here and stimulating here and stimulating and stimulating, and each time your eyes move in a different direction to look at the new stimulus that’s being presented to you, whether it’s a notification of a new Facebook notification or whether you’re playing a video game, there’s a lot of movement happening on the screen that keeps your brain literally addicted to it, and each time, you get a dopamine hit. So, dopamine, dopamine, dopamine, dopamine.
Krista Burns: In reverse, if you can see your cellphone, for example, and you see that you have a notification and you can’t check it, maybe you’re in class or maybe you’re in work and it’s inappropriate to grab your phone, then your brain is actually craving dopamine now. It’s craving to see what’s happening on the other side of that notification so you can then get that dopamine rush. So, we’re seeing a change in brain function where we’re literally addicted to these devices. With other addictions, for example, a drug addiction, we have … it’s not a social norm whereas with cellphones, everywhere you look, people are holding a cellphone. It’s so socially normal to have your phone with you that we’re not recognizing what a problem this can be at a societal level. So, I’m just excited that we get to bring this awareness today on the podcast.
Wendy Myers: My concern, my biggest concern, with children and screen time is that because of this dopamine hit that so many kids are getting for hours every day, that we’re creating a nation of addicts and that their brain is being wired from a very early age to get that constant dopamine hit and that when they get older, they’re just going to want more and more and more and be turning to sex or drugs or alcohol, whatever it takes to continue with that same level or more stimulation.
Krista Burns: Yeah. That’s a great point. When we’re in that addiction mindset or that addiction brain, what’s also being inhibited is what’s called our prefrontal cortex. Now, that’s the front part of your brain here. The front part of your brain is what makes us human. It allows us to make socially appropriate decisions. It allows us to plan, to set goals, to be motivated, and it helps us make healthy decisions, but when we’re in that addiction brain, whether it’s from our digital devices or something else, whether it’s sugar, sexual behaviors, or drugs, then our prefrontal cortex is inhibited, so that leads to more poor behaviors.
Krista Burns: So, now, we’re seeking dopamine through disruptive behaviors, and so I like that you mentioned that point because it starts here, with something that seems so normal, using a cellphone, but what are going to be the repercussions? We don’t know, and that’s why we’re having the conversation because our generation, we were playing outside, we weren’t on devices, right? So, we didn’t have devices with us from the time we were born up through adulthood. Children nowadays do.
Krista Burns: To all of our moms, I know you mentioned you felt a little guilt about your daughter being on her device, and it’s easy to have a digital babysitter. It’s easy to just hand the child the device because they want it, number one, and so it seems that you’re making them happy and giving them what they want. So, don’t feel bad that maybe this has been something you’ve been doing in the past. All I encourage parents to do is recognize what we know now and then make healthier decisions moving forward because when we bring this information to light, now we have more education and more awareness and we can make better decisions on behalf of our whole family.
Wendy Myers: Yeah. It’s never too late to make changes. I see a lot of parents say, “I’ll be at the playground with my daughter and I’ll see a two-year-old child in a stroller going by with a device in their hand,” and I just … I want to say something to them, but we all have our path where we’re ready to make changes or able to make changes, and it’s so easy, say, when your child is acting out or having a tantrum or what have you, just give him the iPad, and they stop that behavior. It’s an easy way to do discipline, if you will, or to stop negative behaviors. But you have to, as an adult, discipline yourself to put in that energy and that effort and that time to discipline a child because when your child’s having a tantrum and you give them a screen, you are rewarding that behavior, you’re encouraging more of that behavior. So, in the short-term, you’re solving the problem. Long-term, you’re making it worse.
Wendy Myers: Then, there’s also the blue light factor. Let’s talk a little about that because as adults, our brains have developed normally. Older adults, their brains have developed normally for the most part, but if we’re looking at screens as adults, we have this blue light constantly affecting us and we’re increasing cortisol production at night. That affects our sleep, that reduces melatonin production. Talk about some of the consequences, not only of adults, but children being consistently exposed to blue lights from a screen, from TVs and cellphones and computers.
Krista Burns: We love natural blue light, meaning we have blue light in the sky, okay, and that is designed to help us feel alert and stimulated during our day so we can be productive. However, you’ll notice that as we’re supposed to be shifting with our circadian rhythm, it gets dark outside and then we should … our bodies should naturally be releasing hormones and going into a rested state and then eventually falling asleep. So, that’s natural blue light. We love natural blue light. Now, we have artificial blue light that’s being emitted from our devices, whether it’s a TV screen, our iPad, our cellphone, our computers, and that’s constantly being emitted when they’re on.
Krista Burns: Now, our ability to control that is having a direct impact on our natural circadian rhythm whereas it would get dark at 6:00PM at night, now it’s not getting dark for us until we literally turn off our screens to go to bed, meaning that that blue light is keeping you alert and it’s keeping you stimulated, resulting in insomnia, resulting in sleeping disorders, and it’s resulting in changes in neural chemistry, meaning that your circadian rhythms, the hormones that control your sleep/wake cycles are being disrupted. We mentioned cortisol. So, instead of feeling relaxed as we’re trying to fall asleep at night, we’re feeling super charged, we’re feeling fight or flight, we’re feeling restless, which is exactly what we don’t want to be feeling.
Krista Burns: Then, this is one thing for adults. So, many of us work on our … We get home from work and we’re still checking emails to feel caught up before going to bed, right? So, we need to start creating limits and boundaries of how much time we’re on our devices. Now, if it’s impacting adults’ ability to sleep, I want you to take a step back and think about your child. When that immature is being exposed, if we’re experiencing the effects, imagine during those developmental stages when your child already needs more sleep in order to perform at an academic level, in order to be healthy, in order to grow and develop. They already need more sleep. Their brain is immature and still developing, so you can imagine, then, this hyperstimulation of our brain from devices in an unnatural way is impacting them even more.
Krista Burns: So, some great ways to safeguard blue light is, number one, to stop using your devices before going to bed at least one hour before going to bed. If you can reduce it two to three hours before, that’s even better, but let’s make sure that we commit to at least one hour before going to sleep. Then, while working on your computer or when your child’s on their devices maybe doing homework in the evening, they can also wear what are called blue-blocked glasses, which have a little orange tint to them, and that’s going to prevent the blue light from coming into your eyes and impacting your brain and keeping you awake. If you’d don’t have the glasses with you, for example, if you’re traveling, you could always just set up some apps on your phone or change your computer to night mode. That’s going to reduce the amount of blue light coming out of your screen.
Krista Burns: So, you don’t have to get rid of technology, but let’s just start seeing how we can be smarter about how we’re interacting with it so we can have healthier outcomes. When we’re talking about your child’s sleep, we cannot substitute poor sleep for healthy brains. We have to help them sleep well at night to perform better the next day and to have that habit long-term of constantly resting their brain, recharging their brain at night so that they can continue to function and thrive in the digital age.
Wendy Myers: Yeah, because just years and years of maybe missing an hour of sleep or not getting a restful sleep or regenerative sleep because of the devices and the blue light from the devices and the EMF, that’s years and years of repercussions. You just can’t get that back, so you’ve really got to, in my opinion, really be highly aware of the damage these devices can do to every aspect of health. So, what are three ways, three natural ways to safeguard our brain from digital dementia.
Krista Burns: Yeah. Number one is proper posture. Now, when I say posture, you’re probably just thinking about the physical structure of your body. What I want you to open your mind to is the part of your brain that controls your posture also controls your alertness. So, let me give you an example. If you start to feel tired or lethargic, what happens to your posture, like if you start to drift off to sleep? You kind of fall into a bad posture, right? Now, if I wanted to wake up instantly, what’s the first thing you do? You sit up straight as if you fell asleep in class.
Krista Burns: So, you sit up straight with good posture to feel more alert instantly, and yet, when we’re on our devices, we go into this hunched forward, tech neck postures where our shoulders round forward, our arms curl up, and our head drops down, and so we’re literally … we’re not allowing our brain to be focused and alert, and so we go into a tech trance or a computer coma where we’re just in our devices and time is passing and we don’t even realize what’s happening. So, we want to make sure that we have alert posture and proper posture habits while engaging with our technology. That’ll help keep your brain alert and awake.
Krista Burns: Now, one of the best ways of doing this is doing a posture break for 30 seconds every hour that you’re using a device. So, one of the … So, how to perform a posture break, it’s really simple. All you have to do is bring your arms out to the side, your going to press your chest forward and drop your head back in this position. Now, as you do that, you’re opening up your body whereas when we’re on our devices, we tend to curl forward, we’re going to go anti-gravity with a posture break. Now, what you’re going to experience when you try this is you spend 30 seconds doing it and, instantly, you feel better, you feel stretched out, and you’re sitting up straighter, but you’re going to notice that you’re more alert and you’re more intentional when you go back to using your device. So, set that habit number one is to have better, proper posture while engaging with your technology.
Krista Burns: Number two is more movement. Now, more movement doesn’t just mean structured exercise. So, if you’re already working out and going to the gym, that’s fantastic. Don’t change that at all. Keep that habit. But in addition to going to the gym … So, for example, if you’re working out 30 minutes a day right now, but then you’re seated in front of a computer for another 12 hours per day, that 30 minutes isn’t enough, right? So, we want to keep our structured exercise, but start moving more throughout the day because remember, we want to stimulate that hippocampus, which helps us have better memory recall.
Krista Burns: So, some ways of moving more throughout the day, it doesn’t mean that you need to exercise for eight hours per day, but what it does mean is that you don’t want to just sit there in front of your device in this posture. So, you can have a standing desk and you can stand at a ratio of three to one. So, standing three times the amount that you’re sitting. Also, sitting on an exercise ball or posture cushion so when you’re on that instable surface, you’re constantly moving your body, activating your vestibular system and activating your cerebellum, parts of your brain, from movement and coordination.
Wendy Myers: I’ve been meaning to get one of those balls that you sit on so you’re kind of always trying to stabilize your core. I really respect those people that have the walking desk.
Krista Burns: I know. Those are amazing, right?
Wendy Myers: The treadmill desk. I’m like, “I got to get one of those.” It’s brilliant.
Krista Burns: Yeah, it is because you’re naturally moving more often whereas it’s so easy to sit down at our computers. All of us adults are guilty of it. You sit down at your computer to be productive, and literally hours pass and you haven’t moved. Although you had the best intentions that morning and you went to the gym, 30 minutes of exercise does not offset 12 hours of sitting in front of a device, right? So, again, don’t drop that behavior, that’s fantastic, but now support that and be even better by adding more bouts of movement throughout your day. So, those standing desks, the walking desks, even better, sitting on an exercise ball or posture cushion can move more often.
Krista Burns: Then, on top of that, I want you guys to set three digital detox doses per day with your family. Okay? So, all you have to do is determine … I want you to do this as a family so that kids feel involved of when this decision’s taking place. So, determine three times in your household every day that nobody’s on devices and you have a designated area, maybe it’s a basket that everybody puts their phone in or maybe everybody goes and charges their devices during these digital detox doses, to find three times per day when nobody’s on a device and everybody’s connecting together as a family. Now, it’s going to look different for each family, but if I can give you a recommendation of three great times where you can implement this that’ll at least get you started thinking about it.
Krista Burns: So, number one is in the mornings. When you wake up, the last thing you should do is just grab your device and instantly connect to the digital world. Wake up with intention. Set your alarm on a clock that we used to use before we had cellphones that replaced our clocks, right? Then, if you do that, you’re not going to grab your phone. So, spend at least an hour in the morning with setting your intention for the day, thinking positively, thinking what you’re grateful for, exercising, connecting with your family, having a healthy breakfast, and then grab your device after that.
Krista Burns: Number two is before going to bed. So, an hour before bed, make sure that that’s a digital detox dose for the family. Then, also, at the dinner table. So, that’s another great time where families can come together and say, “Let’s ditch the cellphones right now,” that’s a digital detox moment, ” … and we’re going to sit together as a family.” Some of the research about family dinners shows that having a family dinner each night as a committed ritual, as a family behavior, is actually as important as studying and being present in school, present in class, or grades. So, just by having those times together as a family is actually helping your child be better in school.
Krista Burns: So, number one is better posture by taking posture breaks and having good posture while engaging with your technology. Number two is more mindful movement throughout the day. Number three is digital detox doses. So, these are three natural solutions that everybody can start right away to help safeguard your brain and your child’s brain from developing tech fatigue leading to digital dementia.
Wendy Myers: We live in the digital age. Schools use computer programs for teaching math concepts and reading concepts, so kids are on screens at school, they come home, they have homework. It’s part of our reality is screen time. So, what are some safe limits and how much is too much? What should we be aiming for on a daily basis for screen limits?
Krista Burns: Yeah. So, for infants, before two years of age, they shouldn’t be on devices. So, we need to eliminate it for infants to our best ability anyway. Then, after that, we don’t want to go beyond two hours per day for adolescents in those developmental years. They can be more for adults, but if we can stay within those two hours, then we know that that doesn’t have a negative impact on brain function. Now, the average child right now, to bring it into perspective, is spending 7.5 hours per day. What the research shows is that seven hours per day for 9 to 11-year-olds is actually showing brain shrinking. So, we’ve gone way past the healthy limit. So, if we can bring it back down to two hours, then that’s going to be the safest limit.
Krista Burns: Now, if it goes beyond two hours because, for example, work and because of school, again, I’m not anti-tech, I’m not saying we have to get rid of technology and move backwards a generation, but I am saying, “Let’s recognize that if we’re spending more than a couple of hours per day on screens, then let’s engage with these healthier behaviors where we’re intentional about digital detox doses, we’re intentional that we have great posture while engaging with our devices, and we’re intentional that we’re moving around more often to constantly be stimulating our brain in a positive manner.”
Wendy Myers: Yeah. It’s interesting that people like Bill Gates, who invented … was a big contributor to why we’re all looking at computer screens all the time, doesn’t allow his children to be on devices and there are lots of other tech giants that don’t allow their children devices for a reason. They’re the ones that developed them, and many times … We’ve heard that Facebook was developed intentionally to addict people. It’s specifically designed in a way to increase the amount of time you spend on Facebook or Instagram because they get more ad revenue the more you’re on Facebook. So, we have to be aware of how we’re being manipulated with our screens and websites that we’re going to and whatnot.
Wendy Myers: But also, it’s so important for families to look at different school options if they’re able to. When I was looking for a school for Winter, I was considering a Waldorf school. This is a private school that doesn’t allow any screens until eighth grade. That’s when a child is typically 13 years old. They don’t use it at all. It’s just not needed, and I thought that was really interesting. It was a little bit extreme for me. I kind of want my child to be a little bit connected to media, news, what’s going on, and trends and whatnot, so for me, that didn’t work, but that works for a lot of families.
Wendy Myers: But generally, I think children behave better when they’re not watching so much screen time, when they’re not watching YouTube. Children that go to the Waldorf school that don’t have screen time tend to … they just develop these really interesting people because they’ve spent more time developing themselves and learning than just passively watching television and learning all these really bad behaviors.
Krista Burns: Yeah. The quality of content matters, too. So, if we’re just sitting on devices and we’re binging out on Netflix, completely not even paying attention to the world, or if we’re watching things that are disruptive, that creates negative energy, or we’re just mindlessly scrolling … You actually get dopamine hits, too, from higher scrolling. It’s set up to scroll in a way that keeps your brain activated and attentive to that device. So, recognizing that if you get on a device to research important health topics, for example, or to do homework, you’re still engaging your brain. It’s fine to use technology in those manners. So, there are positive use of technology. The content definitely matters that you’re consuming, but it’s when we fall into the rut of, “I got on my device to do something important. Two hours passed and I still haven’t gotten that done because I got sucked into Facebook and was mindlessly scrolling for two hours,” right? I can say I’m guilty of it, right?
Wendy Myers: I’m guilty, too.
Krista Burns: I’m not saying, “I’m perfect,” and I’m not saying, “I’m throwing out my laptop.” I use it for work. I use this as a tool to propel me forward, but I recognize that if I’m not in control of my habits and my behaviors, it really can pull me back health-wise, and if I’m experiencing that, again, imagine the immature, developing brain and how it’s impacting them. If we don’t recognize this now … Again, I just am so glad that we have this opportunity of connecting with you and your audience, Wendy, because we need to know it, that we can all become more intentional and have these healthy boundaries. When you start having healthier boundaries and, as you mentioned, start understanding the neuroscience … Literally, devices are manipulating your neuroscience, and so we say, “Okay. We know that this is happening. I know I’m going to get sucked in if I get on, so I can have these behaviors set up where I can actually prevent my brain from going into that tech trance mode or the computer coma and just being on the device too long.” So, safe guarding with better behavior.
Wendy Myers: Yeah. I’m also really glad we’re having this conversation as a wake up call to so many parents out there that are maybe working too much and not paying enough attention to their children. We’re all so, so busy. Many people feel overwhelmed and stressed and so many responsibilities, and it’s just easier to let the kids play video games and watch TV and get on the screen. Even if they’re just doing education things, that can leave some guilt.
Wendy Myers: I saw some behavioral issues in my child, and she definitely was having way too much screen time, and I’m guilty of that, I allowed that to happen, and she just was acting strange all the time because she sees all these videos of people acting funny and making all these weird faces and weird noises and she was just developing odd behaviors, and so I just had to make a decision. I started working less and spending more face-to-face time with my child. Even though I had all these pressing responsibilities with my business and whatnot, I just had to make that commitment to reduce screen time dramatically, and it’s amazing the behavioral change in her.
Wendy Myers: She just started acting more normal, more nice, more engaged, more eye contact. It just was remarkable, and so I’ve continued that, where I’m working less and spending more face time with my child, and it’s just … the transformation has been amazing. I just call out to parents to … You just don’t get that time back. You need to spend more time with your child and less time working and whatnot because … Take those screens away because your child is not developing normally if you allow them too much screen time.
Krista Burns: Yeah. If you think back, again, to when we were growing up, we didn’t have … our parents didn’t have the ability of working late at night at home because they didn’t take work home with them, and it was okay. Societally, normally, you would disconnect from work and go home as a family and have dinner. We used to actually wait an entire week for the next episode of our favorite show to come out because we couldn’t just do it on demand. So, it is possible to live in a world where we’re not just completely run by our devices, right? We all did it. That was all of our normal.
Krista Burns: So, now, it’s what normal are we creating within our own family environment, right? So, if we aren’t in control of the behaviors of our family and being those role models of health … You gave the perfect example. You made the choice to role model better behaviors and saw a transformation with your child. When you make that choice, that’s time you won’t ever get back, and so you can feel really confident that what you’ve done is instilling wonderful habits into your children and really helping them thrive in the digital age.
Wendy Myers: Yeah. You have to create that space. You have to make that choice for yourself. Many people that have their own business or work for themselves or they’re working at home, you have to create those boundaries. No one’s going to do it for you. It’s so easy to get on your phone and be checking it until the minute you go to bed or wake up and look at your screen right away. Create those boundaries where you just have those certain set of hours per day you’re working and forget about it the rest of the time.
Krista Burns: Yeah. Just [crosstalk 00:37:36]. Yeah. Just like if you’re going on a diet and you want to eliminate sugar, the last thing you’re going to do is go buy a bunch of sugar and leave it in the pantry. I know I can’t. I can’t say, “No,” when it’s staring me in the face, right? So, the same thing with your device. If you want to be intentional of not using it first thing when you wake up or before going to bed, just leave it in the living room, leave it charging in the kitchen so that when you walk into your bedroom, it’s not there to distract you, and when you wake up, it’s not there to distract you from saying, “Good morning,” right? Just like if we’re going on a diet, you’re not going to stock your kitchen with sugar, you’re going to stock it with healthier options. So, do the same thing with your digital detox, right? Fill that time with something else.
Krista Burns: Now, if you’re planning to do digital detox doses with your family, again, what are you going to do instead because if you haven’t made a plan of what you’re going to do instead of staring at a device, your kids are going to go, “Hey, I’m bored. Let’s watch TV,” or, “Let’s play a computer game.” So, plan and be proactive with the planning process and then nobody will even notice that they don’t have their devices because you’ll be connecting, you’re doing things that are more fun, laughing, connecting as a family, and creating those real memories.
Krista Burns: You’re never going to remember those mindless scrolling hours that you spend on your computer, but you’ll definitely remember family game night with your family, you’ll definitely remember going to the park and flying a kite or developing sports and doing these things that help your children become thriving human beings. So, create those memories that you’re proud of.
Wendy Myers: Yeah. I’m really happy that I made this choice. I’m a lot happier for creating boundaries with the devices, my daughter’s happier, my family’s happier, and I feel so much better because of that. It’s interesting, my daughter’s school has this little homework sheet where we have to spend a week recording the amount of time we spent on devices per day, and then this homework is trying to create a plan other than being on digital devices. This is hilarious.
Krista Burns: Nice. Good timing.
Wendy Myers: Monday, play old-fashioned games, Tuesday, get back to nature, Wednesday, get physical, Thursday, get cooking. This is what we’ve come to people, having to instruct people on what to do if they’re not on their devices.
Krista Burns: Yeah. Again, we grew up this way. You would think that we would know what to do, but we’ve just gotten so disconnected in this connected world that we’ve forgotten what it’s like to spend a moment without a device.
Wendy Myers: Yeah. Yeah. So, you hosted an amazing summit that’s so important, all about screen time and the consequences of too much screen time, called the Digital Dementia Summit. Can you tell us about that and some of the things that we’ll learn on the summit?
Krista Burns: Yeah, absolutely. So, if you’re a parent raising children in the digital age, I encourage you to join us for this free, live online event, the Digital Dementia Summit. We’re going live May 20th through the 26th. Now, I’m on this mission to expose this epidemic of digital dementia, and I had the opportunity of connecting with 60 brain and health experts from across the globe, and I can tell you as the host, I learned so much in this process. I’m bursting at the seams with excitement to give this information out directly to you.
Krista Burns: So, it’s not all anti-tech. In addition to talking about safe technology strategies, we’re also going to be talking about better emotional health, better mental health for your child growing up in the digital age, how to help create social-connected relationships. We’re going to talk about better brain foods to be eating to support the brain in the digital age. We’re going to be talking about better exercise and posture habits to keep your child moving and keep their bodies functioning at a better physical level. When we combine all those things, safe screen time, when we are blocking blue light and sleeping better, eating better foods, having better exercise and better posture, those things together are going to help your child thrive.
Krista Burns: So, this is not just information. I want you to join because you’re going to get solutions. It’s important to be supported. As parents, so many things are happening. You’re busy, you have a lot of things going on, but there’s no better time than right now to have a conversation about digital dementia because the decisions that you make today impact your child tomorrow, and if we don’t become more aware of this and more intentional with how we’re using screens, then they’re going to pull us in, we’re all going to be addicted, and before you know it, these changes have impacted your child. So, let’s prevent it before it’s too late, let’s prevent it before it impacts your child, and let’s raise healthy, thriving children in the digital age.
Wendy Myers: Yes. Yes. I love it. So, where can we … What URL do we go to to sign up and register for free for the Digital Dementia Summit?
Krista Burns: Yeah. If you don’t mind, you could post it with our notes here. It’s the DigitalDementiaSummit.com. Again, it’s free for all parents to join us. So, be sure to join yourself and then think about at least one of your other friends or family members that could benefit, and please share it with them as well.
Wendy Myers: Yeah. Where can we learn more about your work, also, when you’re … What are you doing exactly? You work with clients or … What exactly is it you do besides the Digital Dementia Summit?
Krista Burns: Yeah. So, I’m the founder of the American Posture Institute, so you can check me out at AmericanPostureInstitute.com, and I’d be happy to do a neuro-spectrum test with you and your family, which tells us at what level your child could be exposed or predisposed to digital dementia and tech fatigue. So, be sure to check it out. Following the summit, I know you’re going to want to learn more, and so we’re there to support you. I just want you to know that we’re there to provide you answers, support, and real solutions, so don’t feel intimidating by thinking of telling your teenage child that they have to take their device away. No. Don’t feel intimidated by that because we’re going to provide real life solutions where they can still use technology, but now we can help them be healthier with it and build healthy, thriving brains and be more resilient as human beings.
Wendy Myers: I’m sure some teenagers, if you try to take their device away, they’ll run away from home. Kids are just like, “That’s not happening.”
Krista Burns: We don’t need to get rid of technology in our lives, but we do need to recognize that we need to be smarter and healthier about it.
Wendy Myers: Yeah. That’s great that you do testing like this to evaluate digital dementia in children because I know there’s so many kids out there that you go to a conventional doctor and they’re not looking at this, they’re not looking at diet, they just put them or want to put them on a medication. So many kids are medicated today when it’s just their diet and too much screen time.
Krista Burns: It really is. 95 percent of children’s research out of Canada reveals that 95 percent of children are not meeting the recommended guidelines for sleep, exercise, and screen use, 95 percent of kids. We should not be medicating, we should be tackling those three problems first, right? So, that’s where we’re coming from is natural solutions to safe guard. We really want to avoid that this leads to more ADHD or that diagnosis of ADHD, which then leads to more medication when it’s not necessary. So, let’s fight, let’s work together, let’s support each other, let’s share this message with as many people as we can so that we can provide natural solutions to each and every one of your child.
Wendy Myers: Yeah. So, all the mothers out there, listen up. Go to the DigitalDementiaSummit.com to learn more. So, Krista, thanks so much for joining us on the show today. Are there any parting words or thoughts that you’d like to share with our listeners?
Krista Burns: Yeah. I just want to share with you that one of our goals with the Digital Dementia Summit is to reduce the glow of screens and bring back that beautiful glow of health within your family. So, please join us in the free, online event.
Wendy Myers: Fantastic. Everyone, thanks for tuning in this week to the Myers DetoxPodcast where we talk about so many concepts related to heavy metal and chemical detoxification, but also, so important to reduce blue light that interferes in sleep as well from screens and televisions and cellphones and computers and whatnot. So, thanks for tuning in this week. I will talk to you guys very soon. It’s a pleasure to serve you.
