Report warns surge in children using computers and tablets '˜could increase risk of ill health'

Figures for England, Wales and Scotland show that children as young as 11 are now spending increasing amounts of time on tablets, computers and smartphones.

Experts have warned it is leading to an increasing risk of ill health, with the majority of young people also failing to take the recommended level of exercise each day.

The study found a “continuous steep increase” between 2002 and 2014 in the proportion of young people using technology for two hours or more each weekday for social media, surfing the internet and homework.

While use increased for both sexes, it more than tripled for girls aged 15 and over during the same period - and experts have blamed the rise of social media.

Dr Jo Inchley, who helped compile the research, said: “We know that a positive impact of social media is social connectedness and the sense of interaction.

“But we also know there are risks, such as cyber bullying and impact on mental health, as well as things like missing out on sleep.

“Also, there are longer-term impacts on physical health from being sedentary.”

She said those risks included cardiovascular disease, obesity and Type 2 diabetes.

The figures were compiled by the WHO, together with the Health Behaviour in School-age Children study.

As part of the study, questionnaires were sent to more than 200,000 children in schools in 42 countries, including 5,335 in England, 5,932 in Scotland and 5,154 in Wales.

In England in 2014, for children aged 11 to 15, almost 75 per cent of girls and 76 per cent of boys used a computer, tablet or phone for two or more hours on a weekday that was not for playing games.

In Scotland, the figure was nearly 80 per cent of girls and 83 per cent of boys, while in Wales the figures were 76 per cent and 84 per cent respectively.

All of the figures were a rise of more than 50 per cent when compared with 2002. Of 42 countries studied by the WHO, Scotland came top for computer use by girls, while Wales was fourth and England seventh.

When it came to using computers, tablets or smartphones just for games, between a third and two-thirds of children were spending two or more hours every weekday on them.

Tam Fry, chairman of the National Obesity Forum, said gadgets were taking their toll on youngsters.

“Adolescents are now slaves to handheld devices and this is doing nothing for their health,” he said.

“Incredibly, teenagers believe that playing computer games with their friends from the privacy of their bedrooms is a form of physical activity and rebel if grounded from their Facebooks or Instagrams.”

The report also found that while TV-watching is declining, only a minority of youngsters watch less than two hours a day.

And only around one fifth of boys in England, Wales and Scotland meet government recommendations of exercising for an hour a day.

The figure is worse for girls, with only 14 per cent in Scotland and just 12 per cent in England and Wales.

The report is being presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Porto, Portugal.

Mental health centre launch for schools

A Yorkshire university has launched the UK’s first centre for excellence in mental health for schools, as new figures reveal a surge in the number of children calling a suicide prevention charity.

The Carnegie Centre of Excellence for Mental Health in Schools, dedicated to strengthening the mental health of the next generation, has now been established at Leeds Beckett University.

It comes after figures from the Papyrus HopeLine show a 30 per cent increase in young people calling the charity seeking help for suicidal thoughts and exam stress.

Other concerns from children calling include fitting in at school and the recent phenomenon known as Fomo - fear of missing out - sparked by social media posts.

In Leeds, the new centre is being led by the university in partnership with social enterprise Minds Ahead.

It aims to make positive changes in the UK’s education system and will give schools the chance to apply for the School Mental Health Quality Mark - a seal of approval for schools’ strategic approach to mental health.