When screens become family

It's a normal scene these daysadults and children glued to their mobile gadgets during meals at restaurants, while waiting in lounges, stuck in traffic, or even while walking around a mall.

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Heads are bowed-not in prayer, but in full digital absorption.

Conversation, once the heartbeat of human connection, has become a rare and occasional event-usually triggered only when someone sees something share-worthy on their gadget and decides to show it to others. The mobile device, designed as a tool, is now a companion, a pacifier, a distraction, a teacher, and, most troubling of all, a substitute parent.

A mobile gadget today is not just a device-it is practically a member of the family. It entertains restless children, quiets tantrums, and gives parents time to cook, work, or catch a breath. But along with that convenience comes a growing list of problems we are only beginning to fully grasp.

Manila Bulletin columnist Mon Ibrahim recently sounded the alarm, citing studies that show excessive screen time-especially on social media-has negative impacts on both mental and physical health. Blue light emitted from screens interferes with melatonin production, impairing sleep. Cognitive development in young children is also at risk, with prolonged exposure linked to reduced focus, slower learning, and even altered brain structure.