Blogpost 10: Depression

We experience stress but stress is different in depression. Depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity that can affect a person's thoughts, behavior, feelings and sense of well-being. These people can feel sad, anxious, empty, hopeless, worried, helpless, worthless, guilty, irritable, hurt, or restless.

I have read an article entitled "Unplug! Too Much Light at Night May Lead to Depression" written by Dr. Mercola found on Mercola. 

In this article it was said that exposure to artificial light at night has surged in prevalence during the past 50 years, coinciding with rising rates of depression. It could be due to the production of the hormone melatonin, which is interrupted when you’re exposed to light at night.

In a study published by researchers at the Oregon Health and Science University, it was found that melatonin relieved. The study found insomniacs have a circadian misalignment in which they are out of phase with natural sleeping times.


This misalignment can be corrected either by exposure to bright lights (during daylight hours), or by taking a melatonin supplement at a certain time of day. While your body will begin to produce melatonin only after it’s dark outside, the level of melatonin produced is related to the amount of exposure you have had to bright sunshine the previous day; the less bright light exposure the lower your melatonin levels.

Yet another study about melatonin and circadian phase misalignment found a correlation between circadian misalignment and severity of depression symptoms.


Studies have also linked low melatonin levels to depression in a variety of populations, including multiple sclerosis patients and post-menopausal women. Clearly, anything that negatively effects melatonin production is likely to have a detrimental effect on your mood. Melatonin’s immediate precursor is the neurotransmitter serotonin, which is a major player in uplifting your mood.

Dr. Mercola quoted "Chronic exposure to dim light at night can cause signs of depression after just a few weeks"

Still discipline is the main key in avoiding this kind of illness. We must learn our limitations and not exceed to it.

I have read an article entitled "Media multi-tasking linked to depression" written by Anna Salleh found on ABC Science.

In this article it was said that  people who media multi-task are more like to report feeling depressed or anxious.

Psychologist Dr Mark Becker, of Michigan State University, and colleagues, report their findings in a recent issue of Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking.

"This is the first report of an association between increased media multi-tasking and self-reported symptoms of depression and anxiety,"

From video games and SMS to soical networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, the past decade has seen a dramatic increase in the use of internet especially by young people.

They report that according to US statistics, overall media use among youth has increased by 20 percent during the past decade.

Previous research has also linked multi-tasking with attention problems, which in turn has been linked to depression, so Becker and colleagues thought it would be a good idea to investigate this link a bit more closely.


But they also had to allow for the fact that people with certain personalities are more likely to be depressed.

Anna Salleh quoted "This dramatic shift in how people engage with media may be important to understanding the relationship between media use and mental health"

Electronic gadgets especially internet greatly influences our daily lives especially young people. They should be guided by their parents to be able for them to avoid this kind of mental illness.

Self discipline is still the main key in order for us to avoid this kind of mental illness. And for the young people they must be guided by their parents or at least by their guardians by not letting them abuse the usage of their gadgets. Parents and guardians must not spoiled their children's in order for them to live healthy and be a good  member of this society.

Blogpost 9: Obesity

Children's that overuse their gadgets might become obese. Lack of exercise, stress and unhealthy lifestyle are some of the causes of obesity.

I have read an article entitled "Is gadget addiction making us obese?" written by  Dr. Rho found on Health relationships.

In this article it was said that in our home or at work, its gadgets that have hooked us for long hours and addiction to this will get worst in the near future.
Children spend more time indoors than outdoors.games and activity on gadgets that is popular with children of this gadget generation which is why a number of children are turning obese. A large number of teenagers too are becoming obese snacking on junk food while engaged with different gadget. 

Large number of obesity cases in the past two decades has been linked to gadget addiction. Lack of physical activity is responsible for children, young teens and adults becoming obese. Parents need to monitor the amount of time children spend with gadgets. For children time schedules should be allocated when it comes to using gadgets. Parents should encourage children to play outdoor sports.

Psychiatrists and psychologists are of the opinion smartphone addiction is not going to be easy to tackle in the future. Parents should not encourage little children to play with smartphones. 

Dr. Rho quoted "Do not succumb to your children’s demands; remember the line of control belongs to parents"

The parents is responsible for their children's health. They should not let their children's to be spoiled and become obese.

I have read an article entitled "The Connection Between Technology And Childhood Obesity" written by Cazza Burke found on Ezine articles.

In this article it was said that before parents derived much pleasure from seeing their kids cavorting in the outdoors beneath the sun or climbing trees and remaining somewhat more active than the kids of today who have found a virtual world in which to remain engrossed. 
Thus, technology and childhood obesity are closely related because we have now become accustomed to having our eyes glued to the computer screen or television screen and are otherwise taken up with different forms of electronic entertainment.

It is thus imperative to understand the reason why technology and childhood obesity are going hand in hand, and when one considers the fact that child obesity has gone up by more than three times in the recent past, the problem has actually now reached epidemic proportions and it seems that now we are breeding obesity in our homes as we are letting our children spend all of their time in front of the television or other electronic devices. 
No doubt, there are a number of other factors too that contribute to obesity, but television is a prime example of how technology and childhood obesity combine to the detriment of our health. Staying glued to the television will mean a lack of exercise, focusing on excessive eating followed by an unhealthy lifestyle and thus contributing to furthering the incidence of obesity in our children.

Cazza Burke quoted "Television and the computer are prime examples of how technology and childhood obesity are making kids do things that are bad for them and if you want your kid to not become obese, you should discourage him from watching too much television, which is a major reason why children become obese, and to also address obesity as a health problem which needs to be addressed and not to consider obesity as merely being a problem with how the child looks"

Parents should discipline their children's especially at the very young age. They are the one that is responsible for the health of their children's.

Discipline is the key to a good life and a good health. If we learn to discipline ourselves we can live without ease. I understand the fact that our parents is too busy in their business and jobs but as a student we should learn our limitations to be able to get rid of this kind of illness.

Blogpost 8: Poor Eyesight

Living in this generation we can't deny the fact that almost all of us are already connected to this stress relieving gadgets. We are using our gadgets from time to time without thinking about its negative effects and one of those is having poor eyesight.

I have read an article entitled "Keep Your Computer From Destroying Your Eyesight" written by Roberto Baldwin found on Wired.

In this article it was said that staring at the computer all day is not good on our eyes. All those brightly colored pixels clashing with the lightning around us is a recipe for eye fatigue and strain.

According to that article this things should be observe to be able to prevent having eye problems.

Monitor Position
Your screen should be 20-30 inches away from you and your eyes should be level with the very top of your monitor. If you don’t have ability to adjust your screen’s height, a stack of hardcover books should do the trick. Or simply raise or lower your chair’s position. 

Text Size and Color
A good rule of thumb: Text should be three times the smallest size you can read from a normal viewing position — which, again, should be 20-30 inches from your monitor. When it comes to color combinations, your eyes prefer black text on a white background or other dark-on-light combinations. Avoid low contrast text/background color schemes.

Display Brightness and Glare

You want your monitor’s brightness to match your surrounding work space brightness. To achieve this, look at the white background of this page. If it looks like a light source in the room, it’s too bright. If it seems dull and gray, it’s probably too dark. If you work in a shiny reflective office, applying a glare reduction filter to your screen can also provide relief.

Roberto Baldwin quoted "Staring at the computer all day is horrible on your eyes"

Staring at our computers is a great hazard to our eyes it emits radiation not just that but also others that causes eye problems.

I have read an article entitled "Gadget overuse weakens sight" written by Kaniza Garrari found on Deccan Chronicle.

In this article it was said that overuse of our gadgets especially mobile phones and laptops is said to cause strain and dryness in the eyes. Poor lighting, the height of the computer table, posture, and even the time of day when computer and mobile use is most frequent, all play a part in some of the health problems that are surfacing. Playing computer games before going to bed, for instance, can disrupt sleep patterns and result in disturbed sleep. Staring fixedly at a screen for long hours can cause drying of the eyes.

According to Dr. Manoj Mathur an ophthalmologist " “Any person or child working on the computer, laptop or mobile phone for more than 20 minutes at a stretch will have an itching or irritating sensation in the eye." This is because the lubricants in the eyes are constantly glistening due to the bright screen. The eye stares constantly without blinking. The normal rate of blinking is 12 to 15 times per minute. When gadgets are used, this reduces to four blinks per minute. This dries the lubricants, causing dryness, redness and irritation. Constant irritation causes one to rub ones eyes, which causes strain. If this is complemented by other factors, then there is scope for refractive error.
Also according to his research the incidence of poor vision in the Indian population is between two and seven per cent. Around 22 per cent of computer users in the country suffer from computer vision syndrome.

Kaniza Garrari quoted "Children are brought to eye centers only when they complain of not being able to see the blackboard in school. But the problem could have started much before that. Regular screenings in schools will will go a long way in saving vision,”

The parents is the one that is responsible about their children's health especially their eye health.

Instead of letting the children play their gadgets all the time the parents should bond with their children's and they should play or join recreational activities that will going to develop their relationship as a family. That will make the children a wise user of electronic gadgets and a good example to his/her playmates.

Blogpost 7: Loss of Sleep

Many of us says that "I will play with my gadget to feel sleepy" but did you know that gadgets hinders our time of sleep? Its not just we enjoy playing but it is because it really affects by suppressing our bodies sleep chemicals.

I have read an article entitled "Trouble sleeping? Maybe it's your iPad" written by John D. Sutter found on CNN International.

In this article it was said that J.D Moyer conduct a little experiment and come up in a conclusion that strong light whether it's beaming down form the sun or up from the screens of personal electronics and can reset a persons internal sleep clock.

He mention that using our gadgets before bedtime could also be sufficient to affect your circadian rhythm. This is the clock in your brain that determines when you sleep and when you wake up. 

He also said that Thomas Edison created these problems when he invented the light bulb. But they've been revived by the popularity of Apple's new slate computer, the iPad, which many consumers say is good for reading at night in bed, when the brain thinks the environment should be dark.

Unlike paper books or e-book readers like the Amazon Kindle, which does not emit its own light, the iPad's screen shines light directly into the reader's eyes from a relatively close distance. That makes the iPad and laptops more likely to disrupt sleep patterns than,  a television sitting across the bedroom or a lamp that illuminates a paper book, both of which shoot far less light straight into the eye.

John D. Sutter quoted "I wish people would just take a boring book -- an old-fashioned book -- and read by a lamp"

Instead of playing with our gadgets before sleeping we can just read books and learn something unlike playing gadgets that hinders our sleeping clock.


I have read an article entitled "Using mobile phones and tablets before bed could be affecting your sleep, warn scientists" written by Mark Prigg found on Mail Online.

In this article it was said that using an electronic gadget for just two hours before bed can cause sleep problems.  Researchers said that suppression of Melatonin is the main reason why we will have a hard time sleeping when we use gadgets before sleeping.

Melatonin is a hormone produced by a pineal gland at night and under conditions of darkness. Suppression of Melatonin by light at night resulting in circadian disruption and has been implicated in sleep disturbances, increased risk for diabetes and obesity. As well as increased risk for more serious disease, such as breast cancer if it occurs for many consecutive years, such as in night shift workers.

Mark Prigg quoted "In the future, manufacturers might be able to use data and predictive models to design tablets for tailored daytime light exposures that minimize symptoms of seasonal effective disorder, and sleep disorders"

For now  we still don't have that kind of screen protectors that protects us from Melatonin suppression so we must discipline ourselves by not using our gadgets before bedtime.

I learn after making this article that we should not play our gadgets two hours before sleeping because it suppresses our Melatonin that leads us having hard time in sleeping.

Now we can answer the question does lack of sleep can cause weight loss? No just like what that research tells us it causes obesity, diabetes and other serious diseases.

Blogpost 6: Phantom Vibration Syndrome

Do you feel sometimes that your phone is vibrating but there's no one calling? That is one of the symptoms of Phantom Vibration Syndrome. This is same thing as Hangover, when we drink alcohol too much. Just like in gadgets when we use our gadgets for a long period of time our body interacts with the feelings and others elements while we are using our gadgets.

I have read an article entitled "Rewired: The Psychology of Technology" written by Larry Rosen, Ph.D. found on Psychology Today.

In this article it was said that if you keep your phone in your pocket you sometimes feel a vibration in the skin adjacent to your pocket and pull out your mobile phone, assuming it is a text or some sort of notification, only to discover that it was a phantom vibration. Or, if you keep your phone in a purse or satchel you imagine that you heard it vibrating, or even ringing, only to discover that it was a false alarm.

According to Dr. Michelle Drouin, a professor at Indiana University-Purdue University in Fort Wayne, Indiana, 89% of the undergraduates in her study had experienced these phantom vibrations about every two weeks on the average although only one in 11 classified them as “bothersome.” Those who reacted more emotionally to text messages and were more dependent on text messaging were more bothered by them. 

The table below shows how often members of four generations of Americans check in with various technologies every 15 minutes or less. As you can see, the two out of three members of the two youngest generations are constantly checking in with their text messages and one in three are checking their cell phone calls and social media equally often. These estimates may even be a bit low according to a recent Nokia study that found that the average mobile phone user checks their phone every 6.5 minutes during the day or 150 times during their waking hours.

Larry Rosen quoted "Our body is always in waiting to anticipate any kind of technological interaction, which usually comes from a smartphone. With that anticipatory anxiety, if we get any neurological stimulation, our pants rubbing against our leg for example, you might interpret that through the veil of anxiety, as “Oh, my phone is vibrating.”

All we need to prevent this kind of illness is self discipline or just lessen and control the time of using our gadgets.



I have read an article entitled "Phantom Phone Vibrations: So Common They've Changed Our Brains?" written by Elise Hu found on NPR. 

In this article it was said that Phantom Vibration has been around only since the mobile age. And five years ago, when its wider existence became recognized, news organizations, including ours, covered the syndrome as a sign of the digital encroachment in our lives.

Other people may not confuse cows for their phones, but research shows phantom vibration syndrome, like hypovibochondria or ring-xiety are a near-universal experience for people with smartphones.


As we can see in this photo his knee is vibrating even though he doesn't have a cellphone in his pocket.

Nearly 90 percent of college undergrads in a 2012 study said they felt phantom vibrations. The number was just high for a survey of a hospital workers, who reported feeling the same illness on either a weekly or monthly basis.

We're seeing a lot of what looks like compulsive behavior, obsessive behavior. People who are constantly picking up their phone look like they have an obsession. They don't look much different from someone who's constantly washing their hands. It is not an obsession but it could turn into one.

Dr. Larry Rosen quoted "If you'd ask me 10 years ago, or maybe even five years ago if I felt an itch beneath where my pocket of my jeans were, and asked me what I would do, I'd reach down and scratch it because it was probably a little itch caused by the neurons firing"

For me I will do the same thing but now that I know that experiencing that feeling is one of the symptoms of Phantom Vibration Syndrome I will learn my limits and lessen the time that i am using my gadgets especially my cellphone.

We all know that these gadgets especially our mobile phones is already natural for us humans this days because it really helps us to make our tasks easier just like sending messages. But we also know that too much usage of this gadgets can be harmful and give us some illness just like Phantom Vibration Syndrome. The first thing that we can do to prevent or avoid this illness is self discipline by learning our limitations.

Blogpost 5: Radiation risks

We are using our gadgets especially our cellphones almost the whole day. But are we aware that too much usage of our mobile phones have radiation risks?

I have read an article entitled "Children’s Health Expert Panel: Cell Phones & Wi-Fi―Are Children, Fetuses and Fertility at Risk? written by Dr. Mercola found on Mercola. 





In this article it was said that there is a direct relationship between duration of cell phone use and sperm count decline. Sperm count is reduced by half in men who carry cell phones in their pants pockets for four hours per day. The motility of the sperm is also impaired. The testicular barrier, that protects sperm, is the most sensitive of tissues in the body, and is 100x more absorbent. Besides sperm count and function, the mitochondrial DNA of sperm are damaged 3x more if exposed to cell phone radiation.

DNA mutations have been linked more to damage on the male side in research from Iceland, the assumption being that male sperm is more vulnerable than female eggs, which are more protected. Mutations increase with the age of the father, and more autism and schizophrenia increase with the age of the father.

Dr. Mercola quoted "These findings have clear implications for the safety of extensive mobile phone use by males of reproductive age, potentially affecting both their fertility and the health and wellbeing of their offspring"

We should not use our gadgets near our body parts because it releases radiation that will be really harmful to us.

I have read an article entitled "The Hidden Dangers of Cell Phone Radiation" written by Sue Kovach found on Life Extension Magazine.

In this article it was said that today there are more than two billion cell phone users being exposed every day to the dangers of electromagnetic radiation (EMR)—dangers government regulators and the cell phone industry refuse to admit exist. Included are: genetic damage, brain dysfunction, brain tumors, and other conditions such as sleep disorders and headaches.1-9 The amount of time spent on the phone is irrelevant, according to Dr. Carlo, as the danger mechanism is triggered within seconds. Researchers say if there is a safe level of exposure to EMR, it’s so low that we can’t detect it.

The cell phone industry is fully aware of the dangers. In fact, enough scientific evidence exists that some companies’ service contracts prohibit suing the cell phone manufacturer or service provider, or joining a class action lawsuit. Still, the public is largely ignorant of the dangers, while the media regularly trumpets new studies showing cell phones are completely safe to use. Yet, Dr. Carlo points out, None of those studies can prove safety, no matter how well they’re conducted or who’s conducting them.

Sue Kovach quoted "Every day, we’re swimming in a sea of electromagnetic radiation (EMR) produced by electrical appliances, power lines, wiring in buildings, and a slew of other technologies that are part of modern life"

It is true we can observe it in the way we live today. Some of us telling that they can't live without their gadgets.


We must lessen the time that we are spending in our gadgets especially to our mobile phones. That's the first step to avoid or lets just say lessen the Radiation risks to us if we cant really stop using our gadgets. We can play sports outside or bond with our friends as a break in using our gadgets. That will really help and at the same time develop mutual relationships with others.