Scrolling from one video to the next for hours on end with no purpose. I’m feeling nothing, but I can’t do anything else. I look at the clock, and it says 10:00 p.m. How did I just waste three hours of my night? I haven’t even started my homework. But I have no excuses. I think about all the time I wasted on my phone that day, and I promise myself that tomorrow will be different. But when tomorrow comes, the same pattern happens again. Sound familiar? Although this is a narrative of my personal experience, it is not an uncommon experience at all. According to recent data, on average, each person spends about three hours and 15 minutes on their phone every day. And one in five of these people spend four and half hours or more on average on their phones every day. Phone use has a negative effect as it causes a variety of problems including poor physical health and increased mental health issues.

Phone use does bring a scarce few benefits; however, they do not outweigh the severe problems it causes. For example, phones increase interconnectedness between people who live far away from each other. In a Pew Research Study, 93% of mobile phone users across 11 countries say their phones have mostly helped them keep in touch with those who live far away. One other benefit of phones is that it helps inform the public about important current events. In the same survey, about 79 percent of people surveyed said that they used their phones to obtain information about important news issues. However, despite these benefits, phone usage is overall negatively affecting people.

Phone use causes a variety of physical health issues, such as poor sleep and lack of exercise. The first main physical issue phone use can cause is poor sleep or a lack of enough sleep. Phones emit blue light, which prevents melatonin from being released. Melatonin controls the body’s circadian rhythm, the body’s sleep-wake cycle. Using phones in the hour before attempting to fall asleep disrupts the circadian rhythm by disturbing the release of melatonin. Additionally, phone use can cause a lack of exercise. Spending large amounts of time on phones takes away time that could be better spent benefiting their physical fitness. New research at Kent State University links high cell phone use to poor fitness. The researchers found that high phone use contributes to a sedentary lifestyle. The students who spent large amounts of time on their phone were more apt to spend free time engaged in other digital activities, such as playing video games or watching movies. This demonstrates that phone usage makes people less inclined to exercise in the first place. Poor sleep and lack of exercise are examples of the physical health issues caused by phone use.

Phone use negatively affects people through increasing mental health issues, such as low self esteem and an increase in other mental illnesses. Using social media, which is the most common use of phones, can cause viewers to constantly compare themselves to others, which can cause a decrease in self esteem. For example, most viewers, including me, find themselves wishing they had as many possessions, or had as much money, or were as pretty as the people they see on social media. This can cause insecurities and low self esteem. Furthermore, scientific studies corroborate this, showing that excessive phone use negatively impacts self-esteem and life satisfaction. Additionally, phone use can cause increased mental illnesses. Studies by the New York Times demonstrate that teen mental health has deteriorated since 2008, which is right around the time that cell phone use became more common. Around this time, the study shows, the suicide rate also began rising as well as feelings of loneliness and sadness. This data demonstrates some of the mental health issues that are increased due to phone usage.

In conclusion, phone use has a negative effect on people as it causes a variety of problems including poor physical health and increased mental health issues. Despite this, completely eliminating cell phones from society is not a feasible solution to the problems it causes. However, if each person limited their screen time each day, the mental and physical health of society as a whole would certainly improve. If people want to become happier and healthier, limiting screen time to about two hours or less would be very beneficial. If that seems unattainable for some people, even just slightly decreasing screen time would be a great first step.