Digital health is being influenced by social media, 5G networks, and 24/7 Wi-Fi, leading to addiction and negative effects on health. Internet addiction syndrome affects sleep, physical activity, and eating habits…
As we strive to use digital health to enhance health and illnesses, humans get ensnared in contemporary technologies, especially social media.The rise of 5G networks and 24/7 Wi-Fi has exacerbated this issue.Some habits are created before you realize them, like checking messages before bed and getting up. If Wi-Fi or power outages last lengthy, many people experience extreme anxiety and panic episodes.
This global digital ecosystem has addictive potential, which health experts are investigating, especially in vulnerable groups like working class and children, and its effects on NCDs like obesity, type 2 diabetes, fatty liver, hypertension, heart disease, and neuropsychiatric conditions like memory loss, anxiety, and mood disorders. Internet addiction syndrome includes several symptoms, but it mostly affects sleep and physical activity. Digital device addiction encourages inactivity. The gadgetized world encourages prolonged sitting as the next smoking problem. “Sit less and move more” is the new health motto.Sitting causes poor posture, therefore we must pay attention to how we sit and the seats we use.The ergonomics of sitting can harm health by causing sprains and musculoskeletal issues from neck to back.So focus on posture, pillows, mattresses, and chairs while seeking professional assistance. Traditional behaviors and yogic postures promote healthy spine construction.
Digital devices cause people to order food using smartphone applications, which leads to overeating.Overeating and not eating home-cooked food also harm health.Fast food’s weight-promoting effects are widely documented. Digital additions and vice versa encourage impulsivity and ordering. Cook nutritious cuisine at home with minimal oil, combine oils, or avoid frying. Trans fats must be eliminated from diets, and authorities are scrutinizing numerous health food claims. We should eat organic fruits and vegetables instead of juices and drinks, which might harm our health.
Apart from eating appropriately, eating slowly, on time, in patterns, and avoiding quick feasting are important. In food and nutrition science, the internet is replete with non-evidence-based, quasi-scientific fallacies that confuse consumers. They should seek assistance from government-approved trained specialists or visit real verified evidence-based websites that are peer-reviewed.
We should eat properly and limit quantities for health.
Digital gadget addiction disrupts sleep quantity and quality, affecting our sleeping habits greatly. Technology has cut sleep time, diverted us, and made us sleep late. Late-night TV channel addiction in adults and gaming in children and teenagers will soon be medical diseases that require counseling and specialist care.
Digital hygiene and digital fasting, often known as “Dopamine Fasting,” are necessary for proper sleep.Good digital hygiene and discipline improve health and clear our brains from information and marketing overload.AI systems now anticipate human behavior and worsen addiction. We need AI-based apps to obtain early illness remission through lifestyle adjustments. Digital bombardment clutters our brains, affects sleep, and health-seeking behaviors, causing dread, negativity, stress, worry, and panic.
Digital fasting approaches like dopamine fasting—at least one hour of digital detox every day—can increase health, optimism, and happiness.
Digital gadget addictions have increased anger, irritability, rage episodes, impulse control, and biological additions. To avoid such addictions, enjoy nature, stroll, and practice yoga or other meditations. New preventive health mantras should include digital detoxification, fasting, or deductions in lifestyle guidance, especially around food, activity, sleep, and drug misuse, for improved health and happier results. We should exercise digital hygiene everyday or weekly to improve our health.
As we discuss digital device addictions, AI in medicine has made enormous advances in screening, diagnosis, drug development, digital health care, telemedicine, and robotics. Mastering any new breakthrough or discovery is an art, like replacing nuclear weapons internationally and using nuclear technology to generate power and treat disease. Digitization is being employed for telehealth, including the government’s e-sanjeevani initiatives, and digital health cards and records will provide massive health and medical research data sets. Medical fields have used virtual reality and robotic surgery.
Simple mantra: device-free yoga, posture, eating habits, exercise, and sleep outside of happiness, gratitude, and peace. Real smiles and warmth should replace electronic emojis, and a laxman rekha (line of control) should be drawn to avoid excessive, impulsive usage of this digital habit that harms humanity.
