Technology makes our lives quite easier and helps us better take care of our health. You can turn on reminders for your pills on your mobile phone or check your online reports, but too much reliance on technology can also have an adverse impact on your physical health. And while nowadays, one can easily find various health-improving supplements, from vitamin complexes to spermidine supplement, not paying attention to technology that affects your health can have negative repercussions.
Therefore, in this article, we will discuss how technology influences your physical health and what you can do about it.
Sedentary Lifestyle
Due to excessive usage of tablets, laptops, or mobile phones, many people are leading a sedentary lifestyle. This kind of lifestyle can negatively impact your health in various ways, including obesity, heart disease, metabolic diseases, and high cholesterol.
What to do about it
To stay healthy and fit, adults should include at least 75 minutes of vigorous physical activity or 150 minutes of moderate physical activity weekly.
A good idea would be to take advantage of technology and use your smartwatch to alert you when you have been sitting for a long time.
Ensure you get up every 20 to 30 minutes for a toilet break or to perform simple stretches.
Poor Posture
Spending too much time scrolling through your social media feeds on your mobile phone, binge-watching Netflix on your laptop, or working in the office for seven to eight hours on your laptop can lead to poor posture. And poor postures, such as forward head posture, rounded shoulders, or even slouched postures, can lead to muscular pain, including headaches, neck pain, shoulder stiffness, and soreness.
What to do about it
Reduce your screen time, but if you can’t, try sitting in an ergonomic posture.
Watch tutorials by professionals on various mobile apps or YouTube to improve your posture.
Visiting a physiotherapist or chiropractor will help you correct posture, alleviate muscular pain, and rebalance your body.
Eye Strain
Looking at screens for an extended period can cause a strain on your eyes, which can make it difficult to concentrate and can affect your productivity too.
It can lead to dry eyes because when we use screens, we subconsciously tend to blink less to prevent interruption of visual info processing. Dry eyes can cause redness, a burning sensation in the eyes, headaches, and light sensitivity.
What to do about it
Use the 20-20-20 rule. Keep the screen 20 inches away from you during usage, and after every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away.
Increase text size to prevent squinting and additional stress on the eyes.
Get regular eye checkups for poor eyesight.
Keep blinking when using the screen. Eye drops can also help with dry eyes, which can be asked from a trained optometrist.
Ensure the lighting in your room isn’t too dim or bright.
Sleep Deprivation
Using mobile phones in bed right before dozing off or exposure to a screen even a few hours before bedtime can suppress melatonin production, which aids in sleeping, due to blue light.
This can either disrupt your sleep or leave you sleep-deprived, which can have a negative effect on your physical health, like obesity, heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and decreased brain function.
What to do about it
Stop using technology a few hours before bedtime. If you must use it to answer a few important emails, use the screen in nighttime mode.
Keep your mobile phone on the other side of the room to limit the urge to use it in your bed. Use an alarm clock instead.
Create a relaxing bedtime routine that excludes screens.
Conclusion
Where technology can be helpful in various ways, it can also adversely affect your physical health if not used the right way. When taking advantage of technology, make sure you’re aware of your usage and implement the right tips, as discussed, to prevent health issues.
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