Smartphones entered our lives so confidently over a decade ago that they turned out to be a necessity. Today, the phone is a personal assistant that reminds you when to go to bed, calculates your menstrual cycle, and acts as an intermediary in all business communications. We do not even doubt that gadgets affect the mental health of a person. For example, the three rings on the Apple Watch became a real trigger for the author, turning tracking daily activity into an obsession. And a sudden notification in complete silence can sometimes be less of a cause for concern than coffee at plus 30°C.
Everything is clear when it comes to mental health, but does a smartphone affect one’s physical health? Let’s understand.
We wrote, we wrote, our fingers got tired
Now turn your two palms and compare how different your little fingers are. And if you can’t find visual differences, try to feel the “emptiness” of the bone on one of them. So, before you is a clear example of the disease of the new century. American surgeons coined the term smartphone sparrow, meaning “smartphone finger” for this phenomenon. This occurs due to the fact that a person holds the phone in one hand for a long time and puts it on the little finger. If nothing is done, the disease becomes chronic and the pain spreads from the arm to the shoulder and spine. So make it a rule to do a one-minute warm-up after long “dates” with your smartphone. For example, these can be movements that imitate playing the piano, closing and closing the fingers, or circular and pendulum movements. The main thing is not to forget that you need to do this systematically.
We found the little finger, but including the thumb, where we slide the tape and click on the screen when using the phone. Therefore, the constant bending and extension of the finger can damage the tendon, which can subsequently cause constant “aching” pain, felt even in the forearm.
Take a breath!
How many times has your family told you to keep your back straight? Who knew this affected not only posture but also breathing. It turns out that a bent position when using a smartphone causes deformation of the cervical vertebrae, and as a result contributes to respiratory failure. American scientists from Stanford University have identified weakened muscles of the airways in people who spend more than five hours a day in front of a screen. The amount of air they could hold in their lungs was equivalent to the results of asthma patients.
and a better face
Have you heard about the smartphone face? This term applies to people who are faced with a change in face shape due to prolonged use of the phone. True, not in a positive way. Smartphone face is the drooping of the lower part of the face due to distorted posture while watching the screen. Let’s look at an example: When you look at your phone, it is usually below eye level. Therefore, you need to tilt your neck down a bit, which increases the pressure on the chin, which is directly related to the appearance of a double chin and wrinkles at the corners of the lips.
Are gadgets killing sex?
Calm down, it’s just one of the theories. But American sexologist Denise Knowles is confident that prolonged smartphone use in men affects the level of testosterone in the blood and, as a result, sexual desire. In addition, the electromagnetic waves emitted by the phone affect the sperm and cause oxidative stress in it. Subsequently, this reduces the number of sperm it contains. But for women, the situation is a little different. According to a study conducted by pharmaceutical company Bayer, women who regularly carry their phones in their pants pockets are more likely to experience an increase in the hormone prolactin, which can cause a cold.
Gaining weight
According to a study by the Harvard School of Public Health, people who use the phone for more than six hours a day suffer from insomnia and insomnia. This leads to a decrease in the level of leptin, a hormone that regulates the feeling of satiety. For this reason, the most expected result of insomnia is an increase in appetite and weight gain accordingly. By the way, according to researchers, weight gain is more often noticed in the hips in women and in the abdomen in men.
Of course, it’s really hard to imagine a life without a phone anymore. After all, there are business chats, access to bank accounts, and cat memes. However, for your health, reducing screen time is in your best interest. The main thing is not to forget the basic rules: we no longer bend over and hold the phone below eye level.
Source: People Talk
