If you are reading this, your heart health is being diminished.

(copyright istockphoto.com)

When we age its easy to look back at how our bodies used to be, and often the superior performance you could get out of them. Personally I remember living in chicago years ago and walking back and forth to the train, to work, to school, to my apartment. In short, the milage was high. The amazing thing is given the proper amount of time you can visibly see large scale changes. Since then my legs are much thinner, a loss of specifically muscle mass.

So the obvious truth is I spend most of my time now playing videogames, driving, or on my computer. This all counts as sedentary behavior. The question is how is this related to technology. What is the cost of the screen time to our bodies themselves?

Interestingly, sedentary time has a stronger negative health effects when combined with screen time. As opposed to sedentary time engaged in other behavior. I am utilizing the phrase "screen time" despite its seemingly exclusivity with childhood behavior in medical terms. It seems to be a pacifier-like behavior to reach for a device contantly so "screen time" feels like a pertinent term.

So what is it about screen time that heightens the negative effects on the body? According too research screen time is more harmful to a childs overall health. While an adult has a more, thus far, inconclusive relationship to it. The most striking health risk for adults is cardiovascular. What needs to change? Or perhaps there is no solution.

I can browse instagram with my eyes closed!

(copyright wired magazine.com)

When my partner was cleaning her glasses in order to read her phone better, a thought occurred. Just how bad is excessively staring at a computer/phone/tv (for your eyes)? When researching I discovered something I had never heard of that is apparently quite common in medical terminology. Computer vision syndrome (CVS), which is a complex set of symptoms that have been studied and given as a diagnosis for a couple decades now. In an unfair twist of irony the most likely individuals to need screens for their profession, are also the most likely to get this condition. A computer programmer for instance, relies on their vision quite heavily for their vocation. When needing constant breaks for symptoms and dry eyes it can affect their work. This can later lead to DED (dry eye disease) resulting in headaches, blurred vision, etc. Continuing in the theme of adaptation, perhaps there is an alternate way to view screens, or, an alternate way to make them. Apparently a company called “mojo vision” is working on a screen that is compressed into a contact lens. About the size of the tip of a pen. It is still in the prototype phase. But apparently they have worked out a way to browse information on it such as your schedule with just your eye movement. If this is the cutting edge of where digital browsing is going, it’s hard to say if our eyes will get a rest anytime soon. Despite this, the contacts do look amazing. Digital eye strain: prevalence, measurement and amelioration Amy L Sheppard and James S Wolffsohn National Institutes of Health https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6020759/ JULIAN CHOKKATTUGEAR01.16.2020 08:00 AM The Display of the Future Might Be in Your Contact Lens https://www.wired.com/story/mojo-vision-smart-contact-lens/

Losing control

(image copyright "a couple cooks" 2017)

The battle with addiction to substances pervades the entire history of modern civilization. Alcoholism for example, is a household name for what countless people struggle from. Now that there is a (relatively) new technology that can spike dopamine levels, the mental health community appears behind technologies rapid growth. Before one loses control with addiction there is a segment of control that precedes it. Sometimes the control can sustain itself and an escalating addiction never arises.

However to even attempt control in the first place you must be aware of the compulsion to use a drug. In the case of a small device with an internet connection and a display screen, a dismissive attitude can let the compulsion go unchecked. It’s ubiquitous and seen as more of an addictive nuisance than a serious issue. If the use of this technology begins to interfere in someones wellbeing they might want to try to reduce their time spent on devices. Once the struggle begins they are now engaged in battling what’s referred to as “social media self control-failure”(Jie Du 2021). Its a term used in a study to determine if mindfulness can combat the loss of control.

The study concluded that to begin with, individuals suffering from self control failure often have a lower baseline of mindfulness to begin with. The constant state of low-end fight or flight has left them with weaker executive control. They are less aware of their own mental state and are lost in posts, comments and concerns with whatever is on their screen.

This in turn affects someones time spent doing important tasks due to the amount of time spent on social media. The effects of this lead to guilt and an overall worsening of wellbeing and mental health. (Jie Du 2021)

As stated by Rheingold “A significant part of the population has not yet learned to decide when it is appropriate to share multiple lines of attention and when single focal point is necessary”

We cannot simply use the internet in a linear way due to its stimulation. The mind is left to wander as randomly as all the links and ads are chaotically bombarding the browser. Perhaps coupling the amount of internet usage with an equal amount of mindfulness training and meditation can lead to a healthier group of future internet users.

Another study focusing on this sort of training found that it not only helped with logical coping skills. It also lessened emotional and avoidant coping skills. Messer (2015)

The reciprocal relationships between social media self-control failure, mindfulness and wellbeing: A longitudinal study Jie Du ,Peter Kerkhof, Published: August 4, 2021

The Effects of Internet-Delivered Mindfulness Training on Stress, Coping, and Mindfulness in University Students, David Messer, December 30, 2015