Since the last decade, everybody has been heavily reliant on smartphones. They occupy an important position in our lives. No matter where we go, phones are a constant companion. You will agree to this. Additionally, the ongoing pandemic has made everyone more dependent on them. You will find children falling prey to smartphones in the disguise of online classes.

You will find people simply scrolling on their phones, even if there is nothing to do. A lot of buying also takes place over the smartphone. You must have downloaded numerous apps yourself about shopping. Social media is also something that most people access nowadays over the phone, rather than the desktop or laptop. So, you can notice a sea of changes in smartphone usage. However, they have downsides, apart from keeping you in touch with the entertainment side.

Read about the effects of smartphone usage on the brain.

Smartphones Control Us

Yes, that is truly what they do. They are affecting the cognitive side of human beings. Cognition or cognitive ability involves absorbing information and comprehending it about the environment. It also takes into account all the five senses and experiences. You will often find that experiences color your life’s decisions and understanding. With smartphones readily available, most people do not use their brains much. Your reactions are also dependent on pop-ups and notifications from various sites and apps. Impulse buying is an example of how you are controlled by one single device.

Information is available at the click of a button. So, you might not feel the need to store any information in your brains. However, this is a superficial way to learn or absorb information. Your brain does not have to work hard enough to obtain any information. So, retention has also gone down. If you read a book filled with images, you will find that the ideas float in mind even after keeping the book aside. However, for screens, it is not so. Another one quickly replaces one image. Thus, smartphones have made cognition more passive.

Smartphones Affect Sleep

Many people stay glued to their smartphones until they go off to sleep. You might already know that beverages like coffee can keep you awake longer. However, smartphones are more potent at keeping you awake for longer. Screens of all kinds, like smartphones, desktops, and laptops, emit blue light. It mainly suppresses the production of melatonin. It is one of the most important hormones that regulate sleep cycles in the human body.

This blue light is also available in our natural surroundings, in the morning. That is why you wake up as soon as light enters the room, through openings in the curtains. It acts as an alert to wake you up. When you toss around in your bed with smartphones in hand, it confuses the body’s natural circadian rhythm. If you cannot have a good night’s sleep, it affects your mood. You might wake up groggy in the morning. Obesity, diabetes, and heart attacks have also become quite common.

Smartphones Interfere with Social and Emotional Patterns

It also keeps you away from loved ones. You must have noticed the same in your family, too. Children are the worst sufferers in such cases. Parents are seen scrolling on their respective smartphones, reading emails, or shopping. And children are seen crying and vying for the parent’s attention. This leads to similar habits in children as well.

You must have noticed this tendency in the children at your own home. The pandemic has forced schools to shut down. So, children are left with no option but to stick to their own phones while parents are busy with work or personal interactions. Thus, it makes it difficult for all to establish relationships with others.

Before smartphones came into being, people used to call one another. However, chats have replaced voice calls to a considerable extent. They have replaced honest conversations. If you find your child has been affected by such issues, waste no time contacting someone adept at psychotherapy.

Sometimes, it goes beyond your capabilities to bring an incumbent back to the real world. However, counseling can help to a considerable extent. Positive reinforcement and Cognitive Behavior therapy are also helpful.

Smartphones Make the Brain Lazy

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You will also find smartphones making the brains lazy. Heavy smartphone usage lowers intelligence levels as you stop thinking. Additionally, Google provides much information, so the brain is relaxed. If you cannot find anything on the internet, you may feel frustrated and think that your chances of success are less now than ever.

Had the smartphone not been there, you would still have found an answer from a dictionary or a physical book. But most people have stopped buying such things today. The world is online. Moreover, appointments are also scheduled over apps nowadays. So, the brain does not need to work.

These are the detrimental effects that smartphones have on your brain. So, if you do not want to get affected, try to detox from digital means once in a while. It will help you retain your brainpower.