How Technology can affect Human's Health?

IS OVERUSE OF TECHNOLOGY AFFECTING MENTAL HEALTH?

​The human civilization underwent many changes and developments with the passage of time.Science and technological advancement has blessed mankind with all the basic comforts of life. Today, emails, iPhones, laptops, and cell phones dominate our modern world. The impact of technology on our social, mental, physical and environmental health can be devastating. 

 

Technology can have a large impact on users' mental and physical health. Being overly connected can cause psychological issues such as distraction, narcissism, expectation of instant gratification, and even depression. Beside affecting users' mental health, use of technology can also have negative repercussions on physical health causing vision problems, hearing loss, and neck strain. Fortunately, there are steps that can be taken to help alleviate these health issues.

Whether we like it or not, technology has become a part of our everyday lives. We rely on it for quick information, social networking, job searching, school related assignments, and entertainment for when we are bored. But is being constantly connected to the technological world affecting student’s mental health? It is rare to find a college student that does not have a cell phone, laptop computer, email and Facebook account. 

A poll taken by The Jed Foundation found that 90% of college students used a social networking site within the last week. These tools are great for getting school work finished, communicating with friends, staying connected with family while away at school, and for getting in touch with professors.  It is important though to make sure that students are not becoming overly reliant on their technological devices and letting them take control of their lives.  Maintaining face- to- face interaction is a key part of mental health. 

Overuse of Mobile Phones

The many men, women and children who spend their days glued to their smartphones and social-media accounts might learn something from Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of the groundbreaking mega hit “Hamilton.” Asked in an interview with Delta Sky magazine when and where he finds time to be creative, Miranda, an avid reader of books and enthusiast for unfettered downtime, replied: “The good idea comes in the moment of rest. It comes in the shower. It comes when you’re doodling or playing trains with your son. ‘Hamilton’ forced me to double down on being awake to the inspirations of just living my life.”

According to the National Cancer Institute, the use of mobile phones could potentially pose a risk of brain cancer. Moreover, mobile phone users are more likely to be involved in accidents both in automobiles and on foot. 

In the fight to stay healthy, technology can give us an edge. We can use our digital devices to improve our diets, track our fitness efforts and manage all kinds of health conditions. But listed below, are some health conditions or problems we could encounter in overusing technology.

Development Issues

Today’s children, irrespective of the age group, are using more technology than ever before. When it comes to the cognitive development of children, the negative effects that technology aides are far greater.

Overuse of mobile phones and computers can put a strain on the neck and/or back. Using them in a right manner or a fixed duration can keep you from such discomforts but excess of anything is bad for health, therefore it is essential to limit yourself. Today’s families are different. Technology’s impact on the 21st century family is fracturing its very foundation, and causing a disintegration of core values that long ago were the fabric that held families together. Juggling school, work, home, and community lives, parents now rely heavily on communication, information, and transportation technology to make their lives faster and more efficient. Entertainment technology (TV, Internet, video games, iPads, cell phones) has advanced so rapidly, that families have scarcely noticed the significant impact and changes to their family structure and lifestyles. 

Children now rely on technology for the majority of their play, grossly limiting challenges to their creativity and imaginations, as well as limiting necessary challenges to their bodies to achieve optimal sensory and motor development. Sedentary bodies bombarded with chaotic sensory stimulation are resulting in delays in attaining child developmental milestones, with subsequent negative impact on basic foundation skills for achieving literacy. Hard-wired for high speed, today’s young are entering school struggling with self regulation and attention skills necessary for learning, eventually becoming significant behavior management problems for teachers in the classroom.

Digital Eyestrain

We spend most of our times glaring at laptops and cell phone screens. Prolonged screen-gazing can make you suffer from a long list of eye problems including burning sensations, changes in colour perception or blurred vision.

When we gaze at a screen for long periods of time, we often forget to blink. In fact, research has shown we blink 10 times less than usual, which means the tears that protect our eyes evaporate without being replaced. Additionally, reading the smaller fonts on a smartphone or other portable device can intensify the strain.

Nearly seven in 10 U.S. adults report symptoms of digital eyestrain, which include dry eyes, headaches, blurred vision, burning, itching, difficulty focusing and pain in the neck or shoulders. For most people, eyestrain merely causes discomfort but doesn’t typically result in any long-term problems.

To minimize discomfort, the Vision Council recommends taking a “20-20-20” break: Every 20 minutes, take a 20-second break and focus on something 20 feet away. To train yourself to blink more, try to get in the habit of blinking every time you breathe.

Sleep Disorders

Cuddling up with that laptop in bed or late night phone conversations keep us up till the wee hours. These constant interruptions take a toll our mental states, making it difficult to turn off our brains. Give your brains some time out too! 

We love our devices so much that many of us even sleep with them. One study found that 44% of cell phone owners keep their phone next to their bed at night to ensure they don’t miss a thing. In a 2011 poll, 95 percent of adults said they regularly use their devices right before bedtime. It might seem like a harmless habit, but late-night technology use can interfere with your ability to sleep. Nearly two-thirds of Americans say they’re not getting enough sleep, the National Sleep Foundation found, and Swedish researchers discovered a link between heavy cell phone use and increased sleep disorders in both men and women.

“Artificial light exposure between dusk and the time we go to bed at night suppresses release of the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin, enhances alertness and shifts circadian rhythms to a later hour—making it more difficult to fall asleep,” says Charles Czeisler, MD, of Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital. To avoid sleep disruption, try replacing late-night technology use with sleep-conducive activities such as taking a bath or reading in bed. Resisting the urge to keep the phone on your nightstand can also help minimize nighttime interruptions.

Physical Inactivity

When we’re using technology, we generally aren’t exercising. That’s why there’s an increasing body of research linking overuse of digital devices to a drop in exercise and fitness levels.  Americans got 32% less exercise and were 43% more sedentary in 2009 than in 1965, researchers found. And in a study of college students, those who used their smartphones the most had poorer results on cardiorespiratory fitness tests than the less addicted.

That’s a problem technology can easily help us solve. There are plenty of fitness apps available to help you stick to an exercise routine, stay motivated and track your progress. Using just one of them can help ensure you get enough activity to counteract your screen time.

Technology can add limitless value to our lives—especially if we take care to use it mindfully. As technology use increasingly finds its way into discussions about men’s and women’s primary care, Portland doctors hope patients will explore new ways to tap into its power to improve their overall health and fitness.

Back and Neck Pain

Overuse of mobile phones and computers can put a strain on the neck and/or back. Using them in a right manner or a fixed duration can keep you from such discomforts but excess of anything is bad for health, therefore it is essential to limit yourself. The devices that you use every day could be contributing to poor posture, awkward positioning, and inadequate support, which can wreak havoc on your back. This is just one of the health problems caused by technology that we have seen in recent years.

Obesity Risk

Technology is a crutch. Fascinated by gadgets and gizmos, we don’t move much and gradually get fat. If you don’t want to get unhealthy or overweight, limit the use of technology. About one-third of American children and teenagers are overweight or obese, making childhood obesity the leading health concern for parents in the United States. Not so coincidentally, the American Academy of Pediatrics has estimated that the average child spends upwards of seven hours watching television, browsing the Internet and playing video games each day. While it’s tempting to turn to technology to help keep your children occupied, too much screen time may instill unhealthy habits that persist into adulthood. According to a review in Obesity in 2012, a lot of screen time may increase obesity risk.Having a television in your child’s bedroom increases the impact of TV watching on weight status, independent of physical activity. This may be due to the decreased amount of sleep associated with late-night, unmonitored television watching. A lack of sleep causes an increase in ghrelin, the hormone that signals you’re hungry, and a decrease in leptin, the hormone that tells you you’re full. On average, a sleep-deprived person will consume 300 extra calories per day, usually from high-fat foods, and snack more frequently than someone who is well-rested.

Stress

Switching from platform to platform and doing several things simultaneously can cause serious problems. Our brain is not capable of multi-tasking and when it happens, there can be severe stress which can also turn into rage. If there’s one thing that every person in the modern world experiences, it’s stress. Sometimes it comes in small waves, testing us in little ways we can easily overcome.  According to the Australian Psychological Society’s 2014 survey of stress and wellbeing, Australians have reported levels of stress lower in 2013, but still higher than the previous two years. In addition, several years’ worth of findings show that young adults between 18 and 35 report significantly high levels of stress compared to other age brackets. However, while these can provide plenty of distress, we are constantly assaulted in our daily life with the bombardment of modern technology. It’s getting harder and harder to find someone without a smartphone, and the next generation will not remember a time when such technology wasn’t commonplace. While modern communication has increased the ease of our life, it has also significantly increased the speed at which it moves. Exchanges that would take weeks by mail can now happen on the other side of the world in seconds or minutes. This can lead us to… do more. Modern tech has gained such a presence in our lives that it’s easy to become addicted to social media and smartphone use to the point it starts impacting our relaxation and sleep. In turn, this causes even more stress to build up through the day, resulting in a cycle of stress accumulation.

 Relationship Issues

Social networking platforms are to blame for most problems, including breakups and divorce. These platforms also create negative feelings, low self-confidence and self-doubt. It is now an uncontested fact that technology is pervasive throughout our lives. But how often do we assess its presence in our relationships, recognizing how, exactly, it has impacted the way we interact with those closest to us? Historically, we are going where no human has gone before, hooked up to apps offering unprecedented exposure to the innermost thoughts and actions of others, as well as new avenues to spy on our loved ones, cheat, and cover the tracks. Technology has put our relationships in beta, redefining how we communicate our desires and trust one another.

Inappropriate Content

While using the internet, you may accidentally see something inappropriate, usually in the form of pop ups. Not just this, there are spams as well. If you click on something accidentally, explicit content can be sent to your friends. In society there are many things that are prohibited to children under the age of majority such as alcohol, cigarettes, pornography and erotica. However with the creation of the internet, children are now vulnerable to these types of situations via their very own computer. The internet for today’s parents can be considered a very risky and dangerous invention in regard to their children. 

What sort of inappropriate content might my child see?

What you think is inappropriate material for your child will probably differ from your child’s view or that of other parents. It will also depend on your child’s age and maturity level. Inappropriate content includes information or images that upset your child, material that’s directed at adults, inaccurate information or information that might lead or tempt your child into unlawful or dangerous behaviour. This could be:

• pornographic material
• content containing swearing
• sites that encourage vandalism, crime, terrorism, racism, eating disorders, even suicide
• pictures, videos or games which show images of violence or cruelty to other people or animals
• gambling sites
• unmoderated chatrooms – where there’s no one supervising the conversation and barring unsuitable comments.

It can be difficult to monitor what your child is viewing as they can access this material through any internet enabled device, including mobile ones such as a phone or tablet. Sometimes your child may stumble upon unsuitable sites by accident, through apps they’ve downloaded to their mobile device or through links they’ve been sent by friends, chatting to others online, or even through inter-device communication systems such as Bluetooth or Apple’s AirDrop.