This is an opinion column.

This past week, I did a quick survey in my ninth grade Sunday school class. I asked the young men how much screen time they spent on average on their phones per day. The point of the exercise was to craft a comparison against how much time they invest in their spiritual lives. The responses ranged from a low of five hours to a high of more than ten hours PER DAY. The comparison became more of an indictment than encouragement, so I decided to hold off. Our technology problem is far worse than I imagined.

Finding a widely-accepted source of medical information is tough these days, but it’s pretty clear that developing minds shouldn’t have open access to screens. For example, the National Library of Medicine recommends no screens for children under two-years-old and one to two hours a day maximum for older children. The American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry doesn’t provide hard time limits, but does offer suggestions to curtail youth screen time.

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In short, we’ve so insanely blown past acceptable screen consumption that the guidance has now been reduced to one word: “Less.”

The numbers the young men in my class put forward are mostly considered below the CDC’s average for their age of nine hours per day. Research published in 2021 concluded that a group of 716 Americans in their early twenties went from 25.9 hours of recreational screen time per week to 28.5 hours.

Let that sink in. Americans in their prime are sacrificing more than one day of each week to digital consumption.

Don’t play games here. There are clear differences between checking your work email and watching a scantily clad influencer complain about Trump while flipping a bottle. There are perfectly benign uses of technology. The excess we’re talking about isn’t the same. I can reasonably account for an hour or two of work-related screen time. I might add a couple more hours writing a column or two. Beyond that I’m either doom scrolling or engaging in virtual reality instead of my family, friends, and real community.

Absolute hour limitations might not be the trick, but ask a few questions about yourself and your children:

• Are you sleeping well?
• Are you eating a healthy diet?
• How are things at work or school?
• For every hour of screens, how much time do you spend physically exercising?
• Who are your best friends that you physically see on a regular basis?

It shouldn’t take long for most of us to realize we’re not where we want to be. The reason so many adults don’t poke their kids about screen time is that they don’t want to be asked the same questions. My Sunday school class wisely asked me about my habits. They knew more about my phone than I did. Over the last few weeks, I averaged 3-5 hours on that one screen per day. Facebook was the culprit on the more excessive days, so I slapped it with a 30 minute screen limit.

I can’t help them focus on what really matters if I’m not willing to do it myself. This shouldn’t be a point of shame but one of opportunity.

I’m reminded of a few lines from the famous Simon & Garfunkle song “The Sound of Silence.” Released in 1964, the song notes, “And the people bowed and prayed/To the neon god they made.” That god is now bigger, taller, and brighter than it ever has been.

We’re at a time for choosing that will shape our future.

Like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego before the golden image of Nebuchadnezzar, we should refuse to bend our knee to a god of our own making. We must also encourage each other in a culture where all of us are terrified of missing out. Ask me about my screen time the next time you see me, and I’ll ask you about yours. First one back to reality wins.

Smith is a recovering political attorney with a house full of boys, two dogs, a bearded dragon, and an extremely patient wife. He’s a partner in a media company, a business strategy wonk, and a regular on talk radio. Please direct outrage or agreement to [email protected] or @DCameronSmith on X.