Teenagers are never far from their phone and as nice as it would be to just separate them, my mother often says, you can’t unring the bell. The selfie generation isn’t going anywhere. On top of my constant vigilance with my teens about being internet savvy, I also happen to be a huge nag when it comes to cell phone safety. Nagging is one of my many talents, and since I’m a giver, I’m going to share my best tips with you.
Simple Rules for Being Cell Smart
Don’t be A Deadwalker
We don’t have to worry about texting and driving for now, but we model the correct behaviour for the future. What I do worry about is my girls being deadwalkers. You know the ones I’m talking about—eyes down, head in the clouds, headphones in, fingers furiously typing, walking straight into oncoming traffic. It’s no joke, so I am on my kids like white on rice for this one. Put your phone away please and watch where you’re going.
One Device at Time Please
For a time, I was catching my girls in front of the TV, with their laptop on, while Snapchatting on their phone. If the average human now has the attention span of a goldfish, then this behaviour should land us somewhere down around an ant in under a decade. Aside from the obvious attention span damage, I worry about the electromagnetic radiation coming from these things. See my next point.
Your Bra is For Your Boobs Not Your Phone
While there is no proven link right now between electromagnetic radiation and our health, I don’t believe for two seconds that there is none. Remember when we used to say that there were no proven health consequences with cigarettes? I remember reading this article about what wi-fi would look like if we could see it, and thinking that these waves were also running freely through our bodies.
It’s a little scary that we don’t know all the effects of this yet, so I stress giving our bodies some distance from these things. Phones belong in purses and backpacks, not attached to our body. It’s also up to us as parents and consumers to demand more research into the effects this is all having on our bodies and our health. Make your voice heard at momswhocare.ca.
Never Hold Your Phone to Your Head
Thankfully kids today prefer texting, but if they must talk on their phone I encourage them to always use wired headphones or the speaker on their device. I’ve also put the Lif3 Smartchip on their devices, which reduces cell phone radiation when used correctly by up to 99%.
Lif3 Smartchips are affordable and easy to use and have very little impact on signal. These Smartchips are part of a smart response to a growing concern amongst parents. Lif3 Smartchips have been tested by three different accredited facilities and they are happy to share the results with their consumers here. Personally, this has been a very real concern for me since my kids picked up their first device, so I’m happy to see a company like Lif3 advocating for change.
You can get 20% off Lif3 products during this awareness campaign using YMC2016 on the Lif3 site.
Don’t Charge Anything Near Your Bed
You can’t always help where an electrical outlet will be in a room once you move furniture into it. My girls each have receptacles near their beds and they are forbidden to be used. If a device ever overheated or a cord caught fire, the bed would be just the fuel it needed to burn our house down. There are countless examples where beds have actually caught on fire this way, and I’m not interested in joining the ranks thankyouverymuch.
Shut the Wi-fi & Cell Service Down at Night
Just like you walk around shutting down the lights before bed, and making sure appliances are off, make a point of stopping at the wi-fi router and shutting it off too. It takes two seconds to turn back on in the morning and you’re giving the bodies in your house a rest too. Also, make sure that everyone turns their phones to airplane mode to shut down cell signals. That’s just being cell smart.
Disclosure: This post is part of the YummyMummyClub.ca and Lif3 #GetCellSmart sponsored program. I received compensation as a thank you for my participation. This post reflects my personal opinion about the information provided by the sponsors.