{"id":4161,"date":"2025-09-06T19:52:12","date_gmt":"2025-09-06T19:52:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/4161\/"},"modified":"2025-09-06T19:52:12","modified_gmt":"2025-09-06T19:52:12","slug":"your-screen-time-might-be-silently-damaging-your-heart-cardiologist-warns-prolonged-phone-use-could-double-heart-disease-risk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/4161\/","title":{"rendered":"Your screen time might be silently damaging your heart: Cardiologist warns prolonged phone use could double heart disease risk"},"content":{"rendered":"

Scrolling endlessly through your phone might seem harmless, but emerging evidence suggests it could be quietly straining your heart. Cardiologist Dr. Sanjay Bhojraj recently sounded the alarm on Instagram<\/a>, highlighting how prolonged screen time<\/a> is increasingly linked to serious heart health<\/a> risks.<\/p>\n

Dr. Bhojraj, founder of the wellness initiative<\/a> Well12, wrote, \u201cWhat if your phone wasn\u2019t just draining your time but quietly damaging your heart?\u201d He pointed to findings that spending more than five hours a day on screens can almost double the risk of cardiovascular disease<\/a>. Constant notifications, disrupted sleep cycles, and long hours of sitting all add up, creating what he calls a \u201cperfect storm for heart disease.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to him, the consequences include higher blood pressure, greater inflammation, obesity, insulin resistance, and even reduced flexibility of arteries over time.
Research backs the warning Dr. Bhojraj\u2019s caution echoes findings from a study published in the Anatolian Journal of Cardiology<\/a> (Ekici et al., 2016). The research examined 148 healthy participants and found that longer daily mobile phone use<\/a> was linked to harmful changes in heart rate variability<\/a> (HRV), an important marker of autonomic balance and cardiovascular risk.
The study reported that individuals using phones for more than an hour daily had lower HRV and higher LF\/HF ratios \u2014 indicators of heightened stress on the heart\u2019s regulatory system. \u201cLong-term mobile phone use may reduce parasympathetic activity and increase sympathetic activity, tipping the balance toward cardiovascular strain,\u201d the authors concluded.<\/p>\n

\u00ab Back to recommendation stories<\/p>\n

The ripple effect on daily life While the average user might shrug off hours on Instagram or Netflix, cardiologists stress that these habits affect more than just posture or eyesight. They interfere with circadian rhythms<\/a>, increase cortisol levels through constant alerts, and encourage a sedentary lifestyle<\/a>. Together, these factors can accelerate risks for hypertension and heart disease. Dr. Bhojraj summed it up with a reminder: \u201cYour habits may feel small, but the ripple effect on your heart is massive. Your heart deserves better than endless scrolling.\u201d Experts recommend regular breaks from screens, digital detox<\/a> hours before bed, and intentional movement throughout the day. As Dr. Bhojraj put it, \u201cPerfect your heart. Log off.\u201dAdd \"ET as a Reliable and Trusted News Source<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Scrolling endlessly through your phone might seem harmless, but emerging evidence suggests it could be quietly straining your…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4162,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[3578,4867,4864,103,4037,4865,61,542,60,4863,4862,4866,4868],"class_list":["post-4161","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-cardiovascular-disease","tag-circadian-rhythms","tag-digital-detox","tag-health","tag-heart-health","tag-heart-rate-variability","tag-ie","tag-instagram","tag-ireland","tag-mobile-phone-use","tag-prolonged-screen-time","tag-sedentary-lifestyle","tag-wellness-initiative"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4161","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4161"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4161\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4162"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4161"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4161"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4161"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}