6th April 2025 – (Hong Kong) The Department of Health’s Student Health Service Annual Health Report for the 2023-24 School Year, released on 2nd April, paints a bleak portrait of a generation increasingly ensnared by screens. According to the findings, 61% of students—43.3% of primary pupils and a staggering 89.9% of secondary students—exceed two hours of daily recreational screen time. These figures, alarming in isolation, gain urgency when contextualised against a growing body of evidence linking excessive device usage to plummeting physical fitness, severe myopia, and heightened suicide risks. Yet, while cities like Zhengzhou in mainland China enact stringent screen-time regulations, Hong Kong’s government remains resistant to legislative intervention.
The Department of Health’s report highlights a troubling trajectory. Secondary school students, in particular, average six to seven hours daily on devices—a figure clinical professor Dr. Patrick Ip of the University of Hong Kong’s Paediatrics Department attributes to gaming, social media, and unsupervised online activity. Such habits, he warns, correlate directly with deteriorating eyesight, sedentary lifestyles, and mental health crises. Myopia rates among Hong Kong’s youth already rank among the world’s highest, with ophthalmologists predicting a surge in retinal detachment and glaucoma cases by age 40. Equally concerning are the psychological ramifications. Professor Yip Siu Fai, Director of the Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention, notes that prolonged screen exposure heightens risks of cyberbullying, inappropriate content consumption, and social isolation—factors inextricably tied to anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) explicitly advises capping recreational screen use at two hours daily for adolescents, a guideline Hong Kong’s students flout en masse. Contrast this with Zhengzhou, where legislators have banned smartphones in primary and secondary schools unless explicitly required for teaching. Parents must apply for special permissions, and even approved devices are surrendered to staff during classes. Such measures, though stringent, reflect a recognition absent in Hong Kong: unfettered screen access jeopardises not just academic performance, but fundamental health.
Critics of screen-time bans often cite practicality: devices are integral to modern education, and enforcement poses logistical challenges. Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau echoed this sentiment, asserting that rigid limits would ignore the “importance of electronic devices as learning tools.” Yet this argument falters when scrutinised. Zhengzhou’s policy—and similar initiatives in Guangzhou—demonstrate that restrictions need not stifle technological utility. By permitting devices for pedagogical purposes while curbing recreational abuse, mainland authorities strike a balance Hong Kong has yet to attempt.
Moreover, China’s approach extends beyond schools. The 2021 Ministry of Education directive prohibiting smartphones “in principle” on campuses has been bolstered by proposals to levy taxes on gaming firms producing addictive content. Professor Yip advocates adopting such measures in Hong Kong, arguing that corporations profiting from youth engagement must share responsibility for its harms. This philosophy aligns with broader mainland efforts to prioritise child welfare over market interests—a paradigm shift Hong Kong’s policymakers appear reluctant to emulate.
Dr. Ip’s research reveals that students spending over four hours daily online exhibit markedly lower physical fitness, with secondary pupils faring worse than regional peers. Sedentary habits, compounded by reduced outdoor activity, exacerbate obesity and cardiovascular issues. Meanwhile, myopia rates—already affecting 80% of Hong Kong’s adolescents—threaten to overwhelm healthcare systems as complications arise in adulthood. Professor Yip’s data indicates that cyberbullying victims face a 50% higher risk of self-harm, while exposure to violent or explicit content normalises risky behaviours. The anonymity of online platforms further enables predators, with Dr. Ip noting a rise in cases of sexual harassment and scams targeting minors. Without intervention, these trends risk entrenching a cycle of psychological trauma and social fragmentation.
The solution, experts stress, lies not in outright bans but in structured oversight. Dr. Ip advocates early intervention, urging parents to co-view content with young children and educators to monitor usage patterns. Schools, he suggests, should integrate digital literacy programmes emphasising responsible engagement, while policymakers could mandate tech firms to embed usage trackers or fatigue alerts in devices.
Such measures, however, demand societal buy-in. Professor Yip stresses the need for “shared responsibility” among parents, schools, and legislators. Public campaigns promoting outdoor activities, alongside subsidies for sports programmes, could counterbalance screen dependency. Simultaneously, levying taxes on gaming companies—as proposed in China—would fund mental health services and public awareness initiatives.
