Saving Children From the Dangers of Digital Dementia – The Story of Vili Costescu

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM / ACCESSWIRE / January 10, 2023 / Vili Costescu is a man of many talents. He is a media and technology entrepreneur who specializes in digital media leadership, branding and social outreach strategies for businesses and non-profit organisations. As an expert in digital technology, he is also very much aware of the negative effect that it has, especially on young children. He has opted to make it his mission in life to raise awareness and educate parents, caregivers and society at large about the concept of digital dementia, a term coined by neuroscientist, Manfred Spitzer to describe the negative impact that addiction to digital technology can cause. It can lead to symptoms like lack of short-term memory, depression, anxiety and social seclusion.

As a child growing up in Romania, Vili’s home was close to that of his relatives and playtime involved games with other young children of his age group. But parents belonging to the millennial generation and Generation Z have not grown up in such an environment. Just as they stay glued to their smartphones, they also relinquish their parental duties in favour of cartoons and video games. This is an outcome of their own addiction to digital devices and their lack of skills in engaging in play with their children.

Through his social enterprises, IntelLife, Vili Costescu is attempting to change this scenario. Vili, who is also a pastor, wants to impart the concept of ‘Sabbath’ or a day of rest in terms of the use of digital devices. According to him, our body is programmed biologically to work for a 6 day period and rest for 1 day in a 7 day cycle. He wants to extend this concept of rest to a day when we take a break from screen time as well and the members of a family spend time together sans devices to recharge for the next 7 day cycle.

He understands that the two most serious issues that society is facing in general are loneliness and lack of rest. “This intentional choice alone to take a break from screen time for 24 hours will eradicate chronic tiredness as we take our eyes off screens to engage with others around us. It will also contribute to rest for our bodies including our eyes, ears and our brains”, states Vili Costescu, Founder of Intellife.

Vili is particularly concerned about the effect that screen time has on children, as studies have proven that screen time can be just as addictive as alcohol or even hard drugs. Use of digital devices is a solo activity that encourages social seclusion and can potentially trigger mental health disorders like anxiety and depression. It can also hamper the development of social and verbal skills as it is when children engage with each other in play that they learn how to communicate as part of a team and to collaborate with each other. Additionally, digital dementia inhibits the development of empathy and compassion. Spending too much time watching cartoons or playing video games can hamper this natural process of development.

Credit: Vili Costescu

Said Vili Costescu, Founder of IntelLife “I am not saying that we should burn our smartphones and tablets. They do have their benefits. But I do think that we need to strike a better balance. We have gone overboard in terms of screen time for both adults and children. We need to pull back a little and ensure that children interact more with the people and environment around them to become well rounded adults. This way, we will be able to ensure that they have good social and communication skills and become better human beings in the long-term. Otherwise, the negative impacts of more screen time are such that we will become a community of people who live in isolation with the virtual world becoming more real than the actual physical world and people around us. We need to avoid this at all costs. Ultimately, we are responsible for what our children become when they grow up. I want to create a community movement that boosts awareness about the need to reduce digital dementia through awareness campaigns and educational resources. Our children are truly our future and it is high time that parents and caregivers stepped up. Nobody is coming to save us from digital dementia, it’s up to us.”

Media Contact:

Name: Vili Costescu
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE: IntelLife

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