If you thought being glued to a phone during meetings and get-togethers was just annoying, think again: it’s actually dangerous for your health. A study proved that smartphone addiction is linked to brain chemistry imbalance #mobilemagic
A team of researchers form Seoul’s Korea University led by professor Hyung Suk Seo presented their worrying findings at a meeting of the Radiological Society of North America. They discovered that heavy usage of smartphones alters the natural brain chemistry. They said they’ve come to that conclusion after a study comprising of 19 subjects who were in their teens.
Twelve of them were evaluated before and after receiving cognitive behavioral therapy, inspired by a program that normally helps with individuals addicted to video games. All of the ones that spent most of their time on the phone were then compared to control subjects with the same gender.
The experiment began with a series of standardized tests designed to determine how “severe” was their addiction in the first place. Based on their answers regarding the way this addiction had influenced their lives, researchers could make a correlation between high scores and depression, anxiety, insomnia and a certain degree of impulsiveness.
Afterwards, all subjects did MRS tests, with the initial group being tested before undergoing behavioral therapy and afterwards. Turns out the GABA to Glx report was much higher in addicted teens before they began therapy. Why is that important? Well, GABA or gamma aminobutyric acid is a neurotransmitter that slows down brain signals while Glx is short for glutamate-glutamine, a trigger for neurons.
So, while smartphone addiction’s effects won’t be felt overnight, they will certainly mess up with users’ brain processes in the long run.
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