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In this era of ubiquitous smartphones, many people have become accustomed to turning off the lights before going to bed and lying in bed to play with their mobile phones, which seems to be a harmless habit that actually hides a lot of health risks.
Especially for people over the age of 35, long-term bad usage habits may bring a series of health problems, including but not limited to vision problems and even "ugly" appearance. So, how do these problems affect us over time?
Vision Health Risks: The threat of glaucoma
Mention glaucoma, an eye disease caused by abnormally high pressure inside the eye, which can damage the optic nerve in the long term and even lead to permanent vision loss. Why does using a phone after turning off the lights increase the risk of glaucoma?
The reason for this is that in the dark, our pupils naturally dilate to receive more light. When your eyes are looking at a brighter mobile phone screen in this state, excessive light stimulation and contrast will force the eyes to make frequent adjustments, thereby increasing intraocular pressure, which can easily cause glaucoma over time.
The development of glaucoma is often chronic, and the initial symptoms are not obvious, so many people neglect regular eye examinations and wait until their vision is significantly reduced to find out that the condition is quite serious. Therefore, for people who are used to using mobile phones at night, it is especially important to check the health of their eyes regularly.
The effects of using your phone before bed on your skin and appearance
In addition to vision problems, playing with your phone in bed at night can also make you "ugly" from your appearance. You may ask, how can a mobile phone affect its appearance? This is mainly due to the potential damage to the skin caused by the blue light emitted by the mobile phone screen.
Blue light can penetrate deeper tissues of the skin and accelerate the skin's oxidative and aging processes, including but not limited to promoting the formation of wrinkles and skin laxity.
Using our phones for long periods of time can also affect the quality of our sleep. Not only does sleep deprivation make you feel tired the next day, but it can also interfere with the skin's self-repair mechanism in the long run, leading to worsening skin conditions, dullness, eye bags and other problems.
Decreased sleep quality can also lead to hormonal imbalances, which are directly related to the skin's oil production and overall health.
The interplay of skin and mental health
It should not be ignored that long-term bad habits can also trigger or aggravate psychological stress and anxiety. Mental health issues not only affect our emotional state, but also indirectly affect the health of our skin.
When stressed, the body releases more cortisol, and the rise in this hormone not only accelerates skin aging, but can also lead to skin problems such as acne breakouts.
Being in a state of psychological stress for a long time may also lead to a decrease in immunity, making it more difficult for the skin to resist bacteria and viruses from the outside world, making it easy to develop various skin problems.
Many people find that their skin condition has deteriorated significantly after a period of psychological stress caused by work or life stress, and this is not only caused by staying up late.
Psychological state and skin health are mutually influential, a good psychological state can help improve skin problems, and a healthy skin state can also improve an individual's psychological satisfaction and self-confidence to a certain extent.
How to scientifically reduce the health effects of mobile phone use at night
In today's rapidly developing society, smartphones have become an indispensable part of our lives. Over-reliance on mobile phones, especially at night, has a negative impact on health that cannot be ignored.
How to scientifically reduce the impact of mobile phones on our health without completely abandoning them has become a topic worth exploring.
An effective strategy is to use "night mode" or the ability to adjust the color temperature of the screen. These features help protect the eyes from excessive fatigue and reduce disruption to sleep cycles by reducing the emission of blue light from the screen.
Blue light, especially at night, inhibits the secretion of melatonin, a key hormone that regulates the sleep-wake cycle. Adjusting the color temperature of the screen can alleviate the impact of using your phone before going to bed on your sleep quality to a certain extent.
Establishing a fixed "no phone time" or "electronic device ban period" is another effective way to do this. Instead of using any electronic devices within one to two hours of bedtime, you can choose to read paper books or engage in light physical activities such as yoga or meditation to help your body and brain relax and better prepare for sleep.
Long-term effects on vision and skin and strategies for their prevention
Staring at your phone screen for long periods of time can not only lead to a sharp loss of vision, but in the long run, it may also accelerate skin aging. When you think about it, the oxidative stress on skin cells caused by high-energy visible light (HEV light) emitted by mobile phone screens, especially blue light, can induce premature skin aging and hyperpigmentation.
From the perspective of preventing vision impairment, it is essential to have regular eye exams. Not only can this be an early detection of underlying eye conditions, such as glaucoma or macular degeneration, but it can also lead to professional advice on how to protect your vision.
The use of anti-blue light glasses is also a generally recommended preventive measure. These glasses can effectively filter out some of the harmful blue light, reduce eye fatigue and protect the retina from damage.
For skin health, in addition to reducing exposure to high-intensity blue light at night, it's also extremely important to use skincare products that contain antioxidants.
Antioxidants such as vitamins C and E can neutralize free radicals caused by blue light and slow down the process of skin aging. Staying well hydrated and having a proper skin care routine are also key to keeping your skin healthy.
As a product of modern technology, smartphones have brought convenience to our lives, but at the same time, they have also brought challenges. The key is how we manage and use these devices to ensure they have a positive impact on our lives.
Through the strategies mentioned above, we can mitigate the potential negative health effects of smartphones and live in a healthier and more harmonious way with technology.
Finally, do you have any experiences and opinions that you would like to share?