Effects of Too Much Screen Time
- Digital eye strain: 80% of adults report using a digital device for more than two hours a day and almost 60% report symptoms of digital eye strain, such as dry eyes, headaches, and blurred vision. Take frequent breaks and use blue light glasses when possible to decrease these uncomfortable side effects.
- Neck pain: Poor posture from tilting the head when using your smartphone or digital devices cause neck pain and long term problems. Keep your spine neutral and shift your eyes to read instead of tilting your head when using your devices.
- Sleep problems: The blue light from our devices is emitted when in use at night and this can ruin our circadian rhythms. This means your natural sleep cycle gets disrupted, which makes you more susceptible to waking up in the night.
Benefits of Reduced Screen
- Save money on electricity usage: Besides the mental and physical effects of increased screen time there can also be financial effects such hampering your ability to decrease your Peco bill due to more time indoors with increased usage of technology.
- Living a more active lifestyle: Less time sat down while scrolling on your mobile devices means you’ll have more time to move around with physical activity. Decrease your chances of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease by giving yourself a break from your screen and get moving.
- Increase your self-confidence: When exposed to more screen time, it’s common to find yourself scrolling excessively on social media. Too much time on social media has been linked with enhancing the negative impacts of depression and anxiety. Therefore, less screen time can improve your mental wellbeing by giving you more time to work on yourself and stop comparing to others.
- Increase your attention span: Research has found that children with a reported screen time of over two hours a day were more likely to exhibit attentive or behavioural problems by the time they turned 5 years old. Providing your children with more offline activities will increase their mental capability while you bond over activities to do together.
How to Successfully Reduce Your Screen Time in 2021
- Game offline: Even though the internet has provided us with many fun games, it never hurts to get out the board games. Why not host a game night with your friends or family. Playing with cards or board games will help you unplug but connect in a more intimate way with your loved ones.
- Enjoy the little things: Why not go on a walk or even go on a bike ride. Not only will you get moving and improve your health by reducing your screen time but it gives you more opportunities to enjoy the little things, like the weather or fresh air.
- Visit a museum: Although you can find a plethora of information online, there’s nothing like the experience of walking into a museum or art gallery and seeing history right in front of you. Some museums even offer interactive exhibitions to really immerse you in the history, which you can’t find through a phone screen.
- Monitor your usage: Trying to be more aware of the time you spend connected is the first step to knowing whether you’re overdoing your time behind a screen. Keep track of how much time you spend online so you can start cutting back.
- Remove notifications: The more notifications you receive, the more you’ll be likely to check your phone. Although you can’t ignore your messages forever, it’s important to allocate times in the day where you can have a break from constant alerts.
Conclusion
It’s easy to dedicate a whole day behind a screen without realizing but it’s important to manage your time and start living a more connected life offline.