Some addictions are socially known to harm health, for example, the excessive use of cigarettes, alcohol and other illegal substances. However, a particular dependence is presented as “natural” for many people: the excessive use of smartphones.
The connection between people and smartphones is so strong that the fear of running out of it has earned the names “nomophobia” and “irrational fear of being disconnected” — whether due to lack of internet or battery. These situations do occur, but the problem lies in the intensity of how the individual who has this phobia feels, who has disproportionate reactions to circumstances like these.
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However, developing an irrational fear of being without the device may not be the biggest problem for cell phone addicts. A survey, published in the journal Addictive Behaviors and made by researchers from several cities and universities in Europe, found that dependence on smartphones can cause problems in the human brain.
The work analyzed young people between 18 and 30 years old, separated into two groups: one who had smartphone addiction and another who had no symptoms of addiction. Using magnetic resonance imaging, the researchers analyzed the size and activities of the brains of these young people.
According to this study, in addition to behavioral issues undergoing changes due to the high rate of use, some physical characteristics of the brain also end up being modified due to dependence. Also according to what was researched, the cell-obsessed individuals had a smaller volume of gray matter in several areas — among them, in the anterior insula, which is commonly known as the “area of substance dependence”.
Another finding was that the greater the addiction, the less activity and volume in the right anterior cingulate cortex. This type of situation is common in people who have other addictive substances in their body; in addition, this region of the brain is associated with feeling empathy, impulse control, emotions and decision making. These results contradict the ideas that smartphones are devices that are harmless to human health and light a warning sign for the need for more studies on the effects and problems generated by cell phone addiction.
Dependence on smartphones can also be considered enhanced by the internet and apps. According to a survey carried out by the Federal University of Espírito Santo (Ufes), one in four Brazilian teenagers are moderately or severely addicted to the internet. Thus, in addition to the effects on the human brain that were presented by the study, addiction to cell phones can generate other problems, such as the “syndrome of text neck”, fatal car accidents, sleep difficulties and other health-related adversities.
Lack of relaxation is also a consequence of the abusive use of cell phones, social networks and the internet. A survey conducted by the marketing consultancy onepool found that Britons, aged between 18 and 34, rest only seven hours a week, that is, one hour of rest a day.
All these risks of cell phone addiction do not distance you from dependence on other substances or objects. However, social acceptance regarding the excessive use of smartphones, the internet and social networks should trigger an alert of attention and caution against the obsession that has been proven to have bad consequences for the human body.
Avoiding excessive use of these devices, putting them to charge in another room in the house, deleting addictive apps, finding activities to do that do not involve you, and even trying a digital detox can be interesting care and attitudes in order to avoid and treat addiction on smartphones. Sources: Insider, Science Direct.
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