What Is Digital Wellbeing?
As the years have gone by technology slowly integrated into our daily lives to a point that we rely on digital technologies to purchase goods, pay bills, and communicate with people. Even in our workplace, employers look to streamline work processes by integrating digital technologies to increase efficiency. Our time in front of a screen has increased since COVID-19, according to a study by eMarketer.com; time spent on electronic devices by children/teenagers increased by 44% since the COVID-19 pandemic. A major factor is that learning had moved to virtual learning due to lockdowns, so children and teenagers could spend most of the day in front of a screen.
Negative Side Effects of Too Much Screen Time
Too much screen time could affect your mental and physical health such as:
Physical Strain in Your Eyes and Body
Excessive screen time not only strains your eyes by leaving them feeling dry and can lead to retina damage and blurred vision. Body posture can be affected as normally people constantly hunch over when using their smartphone.
Increased Risk of Obesity
Using digital devices means it will deprive you of physical activity and exercise. Decrease in physical activity can contribute to weight gain especially if you are snacking in-between Netflix shows.
Sleep Deprivation
The amount of screen time you consume has a direct impact on how much sleep you are getting. The blue light emitted from screens interferes with the production of the sleep hormone melatonin in your body. This is why using digital services right before bedtime makes it harder for you to fall asleep.
Loss of Cognitive Ability
A lot of screen time can affect mental health significantly. Having too much screen time alters the structure of the brain by causing grey matter responsible for cognitive processes to shrink. Deformities form in white matter that serves as the network to the brain’s signal communication. All these changes to the brain can cause poorer concentration, weaker memory, slower information processing, and weaker impulse control.
Delayed Learning in Young Children
The brain alterations caused by long screen time can affect their learning abilities. Children watching television have more difficulty picking up languages. Delayed learning can be as much as 50% higher for every 30 minutes spent watching television. Some may think letting children watch educational programs may help with their education, however, it could have the opposite effect. This is also the case when letting a child play on a smartphone or tablet while the parent is doing something.
How to Improve Digital Wellbeing?
There are many ways to improve and control our digital usage to improve our digital wellbeing.
Monitor Your Digital Activity
To understand your digital well-being, first you must get a detailed understanding of your technology usage. Many smartphones now monitor your activity and can analyse the time you spend on each app and digital device.
Set Boundaries
You can set time limits on your smartphones to limit your usage on certain types of apps so you do not find yourself scrolling through funny cat videos on YouTube. Smartphones will also stop notifications from particular apps appearing to prevent temptation.
Gadget Free Meal Time
Many of us check and scroll through our smartphones while eating dinner. You can set a rule that you do not get to use your gadgets and just enjoy your meal and family time.
Take Up Non-Digital Hobbies
Social Media platforms have taken over our lives causing us to scroll and like for endless hours, it’s best to take time away from the screen by participating in non-screen based activities.
Be Smart With Technology
Technology will be part of our lives no matter if we like it or not. Overuse of technology can have negative impacts on our physical and mental health. However, technology offers many positive benefits that make our lives easier and plays an important role in education and wellbeing. It is our responsibility to acknowledge and limit our usage by using the steps listed above to ensure we have a balanced life between the physical and digital world.
