How Use Of Digital Devices May Influence Obesity Risk?

Obesity is a serious health issue that has gripped the entire world. A huge chunk of the population is overweight. Usually, factors such as unhealthy eating habits and inactive lifestyles are behind the increasing rates of obesity. However, there is yet another reason behind obesity, which is often overlooked – the use of digital devices.

Will using digital devices make you fat?

Several studies have found that people who are addicted to digital devices like Smartphone, PlayStation tend to be more overweight than those who use these devices more moderately. It is strange that a Smartphone can make you obese because people usually download fitness and dietary apps on their phones in a bid to stay healthy. Here are a few basic reasons why your smart device may make you gain weight –

• People who use these devices for longer than five hours a day usually lead to sedentary lifestyles. Addiction to their devices makes them disinclined to live an active lifestyle. You will find them seated comfortably on their couches or reclining in beds, bingeing on a web series or determinedly playing a game online.

• Smartphone addiction also means people will want to spend considerable hours checking out updates or posting on social media platforms. If there is a gripping movie or a series that they want to return to, they will tend to skip a trip to the gym. Exercise can speed up your metabolism and burn those extra calories, thereby helping you stay in shape. Going without exercise for days on end will slowly result in a person piling on the kilos.

• Smart device addiction is also accompanied by a food craving. More often than not people like to munch on snacks while they watch a movie or a game on their phones. Unhealthy, greasy fast food or sugary drinks have a devastating effect on the human body. Like smart devices, you can become addicted to these foods. They re-engineer your brain to crave for more by suppressing the inhibitors present in your brain that prevent you from overeating.

• Smartphone has made food easily available. Even if the thought of rustling up a snack used to put you off eating, that deterrent has been eliminated. People download food-delivery apps on their phones and order food online, which will be brought to them in minutes.

• It destroys your sleep routine. A good night’s sleep is essential in myriad different ways. Quality sleep keeps you healthy, both physically and psychologically. Sleep deprivation can mess up your metabolism and that is the surest way to gain weight. Moreover, poor quality sleep for a sustained period can induce anxiety and stress. This mental state releases lots of cortisol – a hormone that can whet your hunger and make you binge-eat.

Digital devices are part of our lives and they are indeed beneficial in numerous ways. But it is important to learn to wield them in moderation for the sake of your own health.