<Anchor> As

students attended online classes, they were forced to hold smart devices longer than before. Students are complaining of side effects.

This is reporter Song In-ho.

<Reporter>

The 6th grade student in elementary school has online classes and homework after starting school, and the time spent using smart devices has increased significantly.

[Kim Hwa-jin / Child of 6th grade elementary school: Normally, if I went to school before, I only had to watch it for about an hour in the evening. But now, I think I'm looking at more than four hours.]

After seeing a smartphone focused on the fifth grader for about an hour, I immediately measured changes in vision, control, and refractive index.

Myopia symptoms, in which distant objects are not clearly visible, appear weak and the eye's ability to control is poor.

[Kim Dong-Hyeon / Professor, Gil Hospital, Gachon University: Smart phone or tablet PC. When you do things like this, it is controlled when you look closely, so it gives power to your eyes. That may be a factor in myopia progression later.]

Some students complain of anxiety as they adjust to unfamiliar online classes.

[Seungmin Bae / Professor, Department of Mental Health Medicine, Gil Hospital, Gachon University: Children who have anxiety disorders or obsessive-compulsive disorder or those who have a strong compulsive disorder feel much more stress when they are not perfect. There are some children who are having difficulty because emotions are not controlled and stress is accumulated because the class type using the device is unfamiliar.]

Experts say that there are not many teenagers who suffer from sleep disorders because they do not release their online devices until late.

It is pointed out that the reliance on smart devices of children and adolescents is steadily increasing, and it is necessary to educate students about the use of smart devices not only at home but also after school.

(Video coverage: Jang Un-suk, Video editing: Jun-hee Kim)