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Chasing Life

How to Help Your Parents Cut Down Their Screen Time

Chasing Life

CNN

Nutrition, Health & Fitness, Mental Health

4.58K Ratings

🗓️ 29 May 2026

⏱️ 30 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Screen time worries aren’t just for kids anymore. Families are seeing the same habits in parents and grandparents. Dr. Sanjay Gupta talks with psychiatrist Dr. Sue Varma about risks to the aging brain, warning signs and what families can do. Our show was produced by Kyra Dahring and Jennifer Lai. Medical Writer: Andrea KaneShowrunner: Dan BloomTechnical Director: Dan Dzula Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Hey there, it's Sanjay. The current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It's a

0:07.2

constantly evolving situation, and I know that can come with uncertainty and concerns. These types of

0:13.4

viral outbreaks are something that my colleague Anderson Cooper and I have seen firsthand while

0:17.8

reporting on the ground in Africa. And as always, we want to keep you informed.

0:22.9

We want to answer your questions.

0:24.7

So Anderson and I are going to be holding an interactive Q&A session all about Ebola,

0:30.0

exclusively for CNN All Access subscribers.

0:33.4

Go ahead, start submitting your questions now at CNN.com slash subscriber series, and we will answer them live on Wednesday, June 3rd at 5 p.m. Eastern.

0:43.6

Hope to see you there.

0:45.7

Welcome to chasing life. You know, some things occurred to me recently. We've spent a lot of time talking about kids and their screen time.

0:53.5

I have three girls. It is a big topic of conversation in my house. But lately, I of time talking about kids and their screen time. I have three girls.

0:55.1

It is a big topic of conversation in my house.

0:57.9

But lately I've been noticing something a little different in my own life.

1:01.7

My parents, older relatives, and even some of my own friends, they are spending a lot

1:07.4

of time on their phones.

1:09.6

They're watching videos, they're scrolling, they're

1:12.3

going down these rabbit holes. We've been really focused on reducing screen time for kids,

1:17.1

but maybe are we forgetting that it's really not good for any of us, including older adults,

1:22.2

including my own parents. Why is this happening? What does it mean for their lives? What does it

1:27.3

mean for their brains as they age? When does it go from a legitimate way to stay connected? Which I think we all agree can be a good thing. When does it go from that to something we should actually be concerned about? And if this is what we're seeing now, what does it mean for younger generations who've basically grown up with

1:45.1

screens? They've never known a life without screens. These are big questions. They're important

1:49.3

questions. So today I'm going to be talking with board certified psychiatrist, Dr. Sue Varma.

...

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