An ever-increasing number of people are getting addicted to mobile phones. This group of mobile phone users exhibit problematic behaviour similar to substance use disorders. The mobile phone was invented to keep us connected to the world, our friends, and family.
However, researchers have discovered that its overuse leads to harmful physical and psychological effects, some of which are shown below from various sources, including addictiontips.
Increased Levels of Stress
People that compulsively check their phones every minute are extremely addicted to it. Their mind and body constantly remain under stress due to their habit of checking their phones after short intervals.
When you are on a vacation, where you are supposed to feel stress-free, you check your phone first thing in the morning. You chat with your colleagues and get anxious about your work.
The fact that you can check your phone and get updates from work, you are putting a lot of work-stress on your mind.
There is also stress of the fingers. A research conducted in the University of Zurich recorded the brain activity of mobile phone addicts with an EEG. The scientists found that the participants that constantly use their mobile phones have a high level of brain activity every time they touch their fingers on their phone’s screen.
This increased electrical activity in the brain results in severe stress on the fingers and the mind.
It has also been found that after a long and hectic day at work, many people excessively use their phones. Working hours are enough stressful to drain you off energy. However, phone addicts still feel the need of putting their mind under massive stress. Not only their eye muscles get tired, their energy levels deteriorate.
The body is also stressed because when you use your phone, you look down at it. Tilting your head forward puts a strain on your neck and back and results in a permanently disturbed posture.
This tilting of head puts a lot of stress on your neck, shoulder, and cervical spine, which can turn into chronic back pain in the long run.
Insomnia
People who are addicted to phones find it hard to unplug from work and social networks. At night, lying on the bed, one should focus on giving the mind and body some rest and this is exactly what sleep is for.
However, constantly checking your phone and keeping it next to your pillow is doing more damage than you ever imagined. Letting your phone usage invade your sleep is the worst thing you are doing to your mind and body.
This over-use of technology may lead to stress, less productivity, lower energy levels, difficulty concentrating, and lower brain activity.
Melatonin, a chemical in our body, plays an important role in our natural sleep-wake cycle. This chemical interprets light and darkness and sends a signal to the body when it is night time, the time to sleep.
However, when we make use of phones at night, melatonin mistakes the artificial light for daytime. As a result, we find it hard to sleep which causes various sleeping disorders including insomnia.
Changing sleep pattern
Phone usage at night time has been linked to disturbed sleeping patterns by several medical experts and researchers. Using the phone for entertainment purpose makes us want to stay awake for longer hours. Constant repetition of this schedule disrupts our natural sleeping patterns.
Such people usually sleep less than seven hours, which causes several health risks including diabetes, heart problems, depression, inability to concentrate, poor memory, inactive mind, and learning problems.
Depression
People nowadays prefer virtual communication instead of a face-to-face one.
People that are addicted to their phones find it hard to stay away from them. Such people then feel strong withdrawal symptoms when they cannot have their phones including severe depression.
Also a lot of depression is caused when we are anxiously waiting for a text-message or a call but do not receive one.
Our minds start to think “why didn’t he/she call me back? “, “why isn’t he replying to me? “, “My friends are busy texting but I am alone“, etc.
Aggressiveness
Getting addicted to it may cause several behavioral shifts and problems including aggression.
The people that constantly use their phones are unable to look away from them. In some cases, the addiction is so bad that people feel angry when their phone is taken away from them or it spoils.
A great number of teens do not let anyone touch their phones. When they lose their phones, they show signs of aggression which results in constant mood swings, feeling of unhappiness, and irritation on little things.
Compulsive phone checking
One of the major symptoms that have been noted in people with excessive use of phones is that they find it hard to leave their phones for good.
Youths who cover a greater percentage of phone addicts often fail to understand the consequences that this over-use of technology may have on their lives.
When therapists or medical experts tell them about the health problems linked to over-use of phones, they simply ignore it.
Phone addiction is very similar to alcohol addiction. People abusing alcohol know that it could potentially harm their health and in worst cases take away their lives.
However, they continue to drink without thinking about its negative effects. The same goes for people who use their phone as they drive or perform other daily tasks. The use of phone while driving often results in accidents that claim lives.