Screens and Health: What Is The Correlation ?

If you are reading this then you are most likely looking at a screen, but have you ever wondered if the screen you are looking at is hurting you. Our eyes are one of the most important parts of our body and the screens that we look at everyday are negatively affect our eyes. While no permanent damage will be caused there are still some painful side effects on our eyes because of prolonged screen exposure. one of the most common side effects that screens cause is eye strain. One of the causes of eye strain is prolonged exposure to blue light which all screens especially computers and phones generate. Have you ever heard that looking at screens at night is bad for your health well this is true, and we are most exposed to blue light night from working late or from watch tv or looking at your phone before you sleep. Screens will also have different affects on our eyes as we age because our Cortices get thinner so it will not have as much of an effect the older you are, but the problem is that the people that spend the most time looking at screens are teenagers and young children. A study performed by the NIH has shown that preteens who had clocked in over seven hours of screen time, their Cortices had become thinner earlier than kids who had spent less time looking at screens.

Prolonged exposure to screens also effects the physical aspects of our health such as weight. The longer we are sitting down and looking at screens raise’s the possibility to develop obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and even some forms of cancer grows exponentially. This is why parents should limit the amount of screen time for children because they are the most at risk for developing the habits that could lead them to develop these types of diseases and conditions. One of the best ways to limit a child’s screen time is to put a time lock on their devices so that once they reach a certain time of usage they will be locked out until the person with the password unlocks it.

Prolonged screen exposure has also been proven to have negative effects on mental health especially the mental health of children and teenagers. Many young children have become addicted to screens especially phones, tablets, and computers. Using screens and the internet activities the section of the brain that is in charge of rewarding and bringing pleasure and this feeling is exactly what many drugs activate. This is a clear reason why so many young people are addicted to screens. One of the other effects that prolonged exposure to screens I depression and anxiety especially in younger people.

To put it simply yes, screens do have negative affects not only on your eyes but on the rest of your body and even on your psyche. This is why it is important to limit your screen time and if you suspect that it is having a negative impact on any part of you, you should go to a doctor to get checked out.

Sources:

1. Does Staring at Screens Hurt Your Eyes? A Look at Expert Opinion, from and by eyeque.com
2. Digital devices and your eyes, by and from Preventblidness.org
3. What Staring at a Screen All-Day Does to Your Brain and Body, by David Anderson and Rebecca Wilkin, February 8th 2019 Business Insider
4. How All That Screen Affects Your Health, By Melissa Pandika, August 22nd 2016 Rally Health
5. The Harmful Effects of Too Much Screen Time for Kids, By Amy Morin, LCSW, Very Well Family
6. Teens are spending nearly half their waking hours on screens and that can have scary, lasting effects, By Brett Arends, Marketwatch, October 28th 2019
7. Screen Time and The Body, Eyepromise.com, January 17 2019
8. Is Too Much Screen Time Affecting Your Childs Health, Marilyn Price-Mitchel, November 5th 2018
9. Is Screen Time Bad for Kids Brain’s, by Benedict Cary December 10th 2018
10. Screen Time May Affect Social Interaction Skills in Children, by Michael Woods MD

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