Nov 11, 2009 7:57 pm US/Eastern
How Parents Can Crack Down On Teens Texting
Reporting
Cindy Hsu
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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KAREN BLEIER/AFP/Getty Images
Years ago, parents complained about their teenagers spending too much time on the phone. But these days the kids aren't even talking that much. It's all about texting.
They do it at school, on the street, and even in the car. In fact, the average American teenager sends and receives nearly 3,000 text messages a month.
"That's about 100 texts a day. That's 6 times the average in 2007," said Laura Hahn of Good Housekeeping.
That has some psychologists concerned over-texting may cause anxiety and sleep problems. "It interrupts their daily routine, they're thinking about responding to someone when they really should be thinking about school work, or they can't get to sleep at night because they need to get back to someone," Hahn said.
The Good Housekeeping Institute said if you're concerned that your teen spends too much time texting, you might want to set a few rules, like establishing text-free zones. A few good places to start inside the car at the dinner table which is a great place to talk to your kids, and cut the texting during verbal conversations.
A lot of parents find their kids texting until the early morning hours, so set a curfew and stick to it, reminding them that having a cell phone is a privilege, and require your child to charge the phone somewhere other than the bedroom.
"If your child charges their phone in a different part of the house, say the kitchen, they are more likely to have uninterrupted sleep. If it's out of site, it's out of mind," said Hahn.
Finally, be a good role model. If you're always texting and on the phone, chances are your child is too.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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