An increasing body of evidence suggests that the time
we spend on our smartphones is interfering with our sleep,
self-esteem, relationships, memory, attention spans, creativity,
productivity and problem-solving and decision-making skills.
But there is another reason for us to rethink our relationships
with our devices. By chronically raising levels of cortisol, the
body’s main stress hormone, our phones may be threatening
our health and shortening our lives.
If they happened only occasionally, phone-induced
cortisol spikes might not matter. But the average American
spends four hours a day staring at their smartphone and
keeps it within arm’s reach nearly all the time, according to a
tracking app called Moment.
“Your cortisol levels are elevated when your phone is in
sight or nearby, or when you hear it or even think you hear it,”
says David Greenfield, professor of clinical psychiatry at the
University of Connecticut School of Medicine and founder of
the Center for Internet and Technology Addiction. “It’s a stress
response, and it feels unpleasant, and the body’s natural
response is to want to check the phone to make the stress
go away.”
But while doing so might soothe you for a second, it
probably will make things worse in the long run. Any time
you check your phone, you’re likely to find something else
stressful waiting for you, leading to another spike in cortisol
and another craving to check your phone to make your
anxiety go away. This cycle, when continuously reinforced,
leads to chronically elevated cortisol levels. And chronically
elevated cortisol levels have been tied to an increased risk
of serious health problems, including depression, obesity,
metabolic syndrome, Type 2 diabetes, fertility issues, high
blood pressure, heart attack, dementia and stroke.
(Catherine Price. www.nytimes.com, 24.04.2019. Adaptado.)
No trecho do último parágrafo “while doing so might
soothe you
for a second”, o termo sublinhado equivale, em português, a
