Are You Addicted To Your Phone? This Is How Smartphone Light Affects Your Brain , Mind & Body (Infographics)
Did you know that smartphones can harm your brain, disrupt your body's biorhythms, and damage your health? Shockingly, but a double espresso influences our body less than the light of our phone!
Home Health and Welness Natural Ayuverdic How Smartphone Light Affects Your Brain , Mind & Body (Infographics)
By Sophia Ava YEET MAGAZINE | Updated 0439 GMT (1239 HKT) February 02, 2022
Hard as it might be to stop, looking at your phone at night is a terrible idea.
A very informative infographic here as we are living in the age of screen addiction.
63% of people aged between 18 and 29 and 30% of people from 30 to 64 fall asleep holding their smartphones.
Using a mobile phone at night before going to bed can create havoc on your sleep patterns. Your phone emits blue-violet light that signals your brain to stop producing melatonin (the sleep hormone)To learn about how smartphone affects our health
A good night's sleep is very important to one's health (and mood) but has become severely underated in today's face paced world.
Do yourself a favour a get in the habit of a sleep routine: do what you need to on-line and put your phone away an hour before bed, meditate for 10mins, relax the rest of the time and try to go to bed at about the same time each night.
How does lack of sleep affect you?
Did you know that smartphones can harm your brain, disrupt your body's biorhythms, and damage your health? Shockingly, but a double espresso influences our body less than the light of our phone!
Smartphone light can cause serious health problems.
You might not know this, but your smartphone emits a bright blue light which allows you to read what’s on the screen even during the brightest points of the day. But the light doesn’t turn off or adjust according to the hour of the day; it’s continually emitted, not only by our smartphones, but by our laptops, televisions, and other devices as well.
How smartphone light affects your brain and body?
Smartphone screens emit bright blue light so you can see them even at the sunniest times of day.But at night, your brain gets confused by that light as it mimics the brightness of the sun. This causes the brain to stop producing melatonin, a hormone that gives your body the "time to sleep" cues. Because of this, smartphone light can disrupt your sleep cycle making it harder to fall and stay asleep and potentially causing serious health problems along the way.
The problem is that this light, which mimics the brightness of the sun, confuses your brain into thinking it’s daytime, even during the dead of night.
This in turn stops your brain from releasing melatonin, the hormone which induces sleep, and prevents you from falling asleep. This is why experts recommend to turn off all screens at least two hours before bed.
Melatonin is released by a tiny organ in your brain called the pineal gland a couple of hours prior to sleep.
The science of why the blue light emitted by mobile devices keeps people awake has led to the discovery of a photoreceptor called Melanopsin. Though we’ve long been familiar with the various cones and rods that construct our vision, Melanopsin was discovered recently in retinal ganglion cells, which are sensitive to blue light. Since then, experimental research has found that the average person using mobile devices before bed may have difficulty falling and/or staying asleep.
The impact of blue light is even more significant for teenagers, who are more vulnerable to the effects of light than adults.
This is because circadian rhythm naturally shifts during adolescence, causing teenagers to feel more awake late into the night. Starting up a video game or television show just before bedtime could be enough to push sleepiness away for another hour or two, making early mornings particularly difficult.
Blue light isn't the only concern
Dr. Martin Blank from the Department of Physiology and Cellular Biophysics at Colombia University has joined a group of scientists from around the world who are making an international appeal to the United Nations regarding the dangers associated with various electromagnetic emitting devices, like cellphones and WiFi.
There are multiple concerns with these devices, including their link to cancer. More concerning still is the fact that a child’s brain absorbs up to four times as much radiation as that of an adult, and children today are growing up with these devices in hand. You can read more details about this HERE.Our love for our screens is in itself a problem.
In China, screen addiction is actually considered a clinical disorder, and as a result a number of rehabilitation centres have been established where young people addicted to screens are completely isolated from all media.
Although the success of these treatment centres has yet to be established, their necessity paints a dark picture of the technological age in which we live. ( source)
WHAT YOU CAN DO
The first thing you can do is limit your screen time before bed, turning all screens off at least two hours before you plan to fall asleep. This is the perfect time to catch up on your reading.
You can also download an app called f.lux, which adjusts the colour of your computer’s display to the time of day — warm at night and brighter during the day — and cuts the blue light being emitted. There are similar apps for phones as well. All of us here at CE use these apps and have really noticed an improvement in our sleep quality.
HERE is a page from their website that provides more research into what staring at screens can do to your sleep, as well as the science behind the f.lux app.
Regardless of whether you are worried about your sleep, we can all benefit from a daily break from our smartphones and other screens.
HOW DIGITAL ADDICTION AFFECT US
How to Identify Digital Addiction?
This type of addiction can encompass a variety of activities but is most commonly used to describe someone who is excessively engaged in online gambling, gaming, online shopping or social media. The term is also used for someone who is addicted to their smartphone in general, meaning they use it all the time and can’t stop.
Because smartphone and internet use are a part of daily life for most people, it can be difficult to spot an addiction. The difference comes in how a person responds to their online activities, as well as how they respond when their activities are interrupted.
While the signs and symptoms may vary, in general:
- Opt to spend time alone with the computer, tablet or smartphone rather than socialize with family or friends
- Attempt to hide or minimize the phone or computer screen when another person walks into the room
- Prefer the company of their online friends and peers over family or friends in person
- Derive feelings of self-worth and meaning from their activities•Neglect household chores and responsibilities
- Display increased feelings of anxiety or agitationDigital Addiction Can Affect us physically, mentally and emotionally.
The Physical Effects
Promotes Poor Posture-Using your cell phone can change the way you hold your head and your neck, causing long-term pain and leading to other health problems, including respiratory issues, headaches, neck pain and more . Moreover, it happens because most people don’t pay attention to their posture when they’re scrolling through Facebook or texting a friend.
Affects Your Eyes-Screens emit light in varying degrees that can impact a person’s eyes. Some of the symptoms, including:
- Eye strain
- Blurry vision
- Red, irritated and dry eyes
- Headaches•Shoulder pain
- Neck pain*The Mental Effect
Phantom Phone Notifications-Everyone has had times when they thought they heard their phone beep or mistakenly felt it vibrate only to find out that they imagined it.
These feelings can lead to anxiety, agitation or depression, which are serious and should not be taken lightly.
*The Emotion Effects
Anxiety and Depression-Anxiety stems from the constant demands of the online world. The allure of the digital world is more than someone who’s addicted to it can stand.
Depression, on the other hand, can happen when a person does not get the “high” they normally experience from their online activities. In fact, digital addiction and its effects have been compared to the high that comes from taking opioids — and when an addict doesn’t have it, they can experience low moods, feelings of hopelessness and sadness.
Isolation-Often linked to anxiety and depression, isolation is a huge problem in today’s digital world.
As people become increasingly invested online, particularly with social media, they lose important relationships with real people.
Smartphone use has also been found to have a negative impact on parent-child relationships when a parent is overly distracted by their phone, causing children to feel distress and isolation.
Agitation
Agitation occurs when a person is unable to satisfy the urges that their addiction creates.
In these and other cases, the result is increasing agitation because nothing else will satisfy their brain’s need for the stimulation and pleasure that comes from a digital addiction.
Outbursts can be sudden and extreme, and they can be scary and confusing for loved ones, particularly those who aren’t aware of the addiction or its severity.
Taking everything into account,Let's be aware on these certain symptoms of Digital addiction .I want you to be aware and be reminded to always have self-discipline and self control in using your digital technology(smartphones,laptop and etc.).
In order, to prevent the bad impact in our daily living.Find other ways to let you have a great and productive day.
NEVER ALLOW DIGITAL ADDICTION EAT YOU! BE AWARE AND BE A RESPONSIBLE DIGITAL USER.