Screen time is way up since the global pandemic began. While it’s an understandable diversion from life during COVID-19, it’s problematic when it comes to the rest of your health. A new study from scientists at Arizona State University shows the longer someone stares at a TV, phone, or computer screen during the day, the worse their health habits are.
Interestingly, when researchers broke down the screen use and health behaviors of the roughly 1,000 study participants, they found watching TV was linked to the worst eating habits, while smartphone use was most directly correlated to poor sleep. All screen use has some negative health consequences, says Christopher Wharton, Ph.D., associate professor of nutrition at Arizona State and co-author of the study, but if you’re going to pick your battles, start by limiting the Netflix binges and shutting off your phone an hour before bed.
“Different devices matter for different health behaviors, and we can make more targeted health improvements if we think about use of particular devices,” he says.