Apple CEO Says Get Off Your Phone (and Science Agrees) – BGR

Apple CEO Tim Cook may have surprised at least the viewers of “Good Morning America” ​​in a recent interview on the show when technology suggests that people can benefit from spending less time using their digital devices. As People reported, when speaking with host Michael Strahan (and discussing smartphones that Apple makes), Cook said, “I don’t want people to use it too much. I don’t want people to look at a smartphone more than it looks to the human eye. This is not the way you want to spend your day. Go out and use it naturally.”

Cook may have a point, even if he is the last person most people would expect to achieve. Consider just one alarming number: According to Common Sense Media, between 2015 and 2021, the average youth in the United States between the ages of 13 and 18 will spend more than eight hours a day interacting with screen-based media. Unfortunately, as noted in the academic journal Frontiers in Psychiatry, smartphone addiction can have negative effects on mental and physical health. On the other hand, by understanding the ways in which excessive use of smartphones and digital devices can cause harm, users may begin to appreciate the true benefits of following Cook’s advice.

The negative health effects of spending large chunks of the day reading come in many forms. Others involve only physical discomfort. For example, looking at a phone or computer device for long periods of time can result in “tech neck,” a general term that includes many posture problems. Some of the effects of smartphone addiction can be more insidious. Apps, websites, and other stimuli your phone provides access to can provide quick and easy dopamine boosts, which can create a cycle similar to addiction.

The user feels the urge to constantly check their phone or open an app in pursuit of another dopamine hit. According to a study in Frontiers in Psychiatry, this cycle can result in decreased impulse control. The paper also touches on how smartphone use can affect sleep duration and quality. The authors cite various studies that show a link between excessive screen time and poor sleep. If smartphones make people sleepy, the health effects can range from irritability to heart disease.

Depression is another potential health issue caused by spending long hours browsing. The authors of the paper cite a study showing that spending more than two hours a day interacting with screens increases the risk of depression in US children and adolescents. That study shows that “the risk increases with time of exposure.”

Ironically, as you read this, you may feel like you’re doing what studies like this warn against: doom-scrolling. That is why it is also important to learn about possible solutions. For example, as one paper in BMC Medicine summarizes, reducing your daily physical activity for just three weeks produces mental health benefits. The Frontiers in Psychiatry paper discusses some ways to guard against the negative health effects of smartphone addiction.

They encourage smartphone users to make sure they know exactly what activities they wish to do when they pick up their phones. Committing to using phones only to complete certain tasks can lead to reduced mobility. That said, in the digital age, many cannot avoid using their phones and other devices to their full potential. Therefore the authors of the paper show that exercise has been shown to be an effective way to combat the health effects of a lot of screen time.

Alternatively, a simple upgrade like a viewing platform can reduce your chances of developing tech neck. Smartphones and digital devices are not going anywhere. However, that does not mean that we should let them control the way we spend our days. It’s the kind of common sense view of technology that even Tim Cook agrees with.