Hyderabad: Cardio-toxic stress hormones are released in those who are addicted to smartphones for more than six hours a day, say experts who found 70 per cent of teenagers suffering from this.
Psychologist P.N. Nair said, “We find many teenagers are nervous handling small issues or facing another person due to an argument they have had over social issues. These are small issues but they are tense as they have not dealt with such things.” The problem is seen among those who are low on confidence. “During these times, they have anxiety and panic attacks and they are stressed out,” Dr Nair said.
The increasing stress is also due to physical inactivity.
Dr Shyam Kalavalapalli, senior consultant endocrinologist, said, “The effect of smartphones on hormones is indirect. A sedentary lifestyle gives rise to problems of obesity, physical inactivity, too much of sitting and being in a single position for long. The sedentary lifestyle leads to problems of poly cystic ovarian disease in young girls and weight gain is an issue seen in both the genders.”
Overstimulation of the brain due to a constant single activity leads to problems for other motor movements in the body. Dr S. Kishore, senior endocrinologist, said, “In many teenagers, the hormonal changes are being seen as their pattern of sleep is affected. As their biological clock is tampered with, they show sleep-related issues and insulin resistance. The stress hormones are working hard to protect the body and their overworking is leading to an imbalance.”
Experts said that effects would be long-term, and are being seen among patients in their early 30’s in the form of early onset of diseases like diabetes, fertility problems and abdominal obesity.
Heavy usage of smartphone is a disease
Counselling is necessary for parents and students using smartphones for more than six to eight hours a day. The heavy dependency on smartphones is a disease. This is a psychological dependency and awareness should be spread among the people.
Senior psychiatrist Dr V. Naresh said many parents believe that spending long hours with smartphones is the in-thing. “They are not able to understand that it is becoming a dependency and this is due to an underlying psychological problem. They have to first accept that too much time on the phone is not the right thing.”
As a solution, doctors encourage real-life-conversations with patients and also ask them to indulge in more of physical activity.
A few Expert tips
- Have real-life group chats and debates
- Instead of wishing friends on social networking sites, call them or meet them.
- Restrict the time when the phone will be checked.
- Restrict constant updates, keep interaction only to the level of necessity.
