Be honest. How much screentime do you clock each day? <\/p>\n
Americans are averaging around seven hours a day <\/a>on their devices, and that may just be setting us up for some extremely negative cognitive effects.<\/p>\n Grey Matter<\/p>\n One analysis<\/a> showed that increased screentime (six hours a day or more) can lead to decreased grey matter. Grey matter<\/a> is where information processing happens. About 40 percent of the brain consists of grey matter. It\u2019s where most of the neuronal structures are, which means it\u2019s where the most important brain functions take place. The Cleveland Clinic explains, \u201cGrey matter is the place where the processing of sensation, perception, voluntary movement, learning, speech, and cognition<\/a> takes place.\u201d<\/p>\n The same study found that too much screentime also decreased the amount of white matter, which is where a lot of the communication between brain regions takes place. It\u2019s white because it\u2019s made of a fatty substance called myelin that helps speed communication throughout the brain. <\/p>\n Dementia<\/p>\n Even if I didn\u2019t explain why, I hope you\u2019d be encouraged to reduce your screentime based solely on the fact that it\u2019s shrinking our brains. <\/p>\n Reduced grey matter is linked with dementia<\/a>. The abovementioned study shows a possible link with screentime and the development of early-onset Alzheimer\u2019s disease. The CDC predicts that the prevalence of dementia will increase twofold in future generations as a result. <\/p>\n IQ<\/p>\n The paper also pointed to possible decreases in IQ<\/a> and increases in mental illness and cognitive impairments as a result of too much screentime. Recent studies show a similar phenomenon with people who are overly reliant on AI<\/a> chatbots. Screens are literally shrinking our brains and making us dumber.<\/p>\n Taking Extreme Action to Prevent Extreme Cognitive Decline<\/p>\n If there\u2019s even the slightest chance that screens are going to make it more likely that I\u2019ll get dementia or lose some of my cognitive ability, I\u2019m going to take some drastic steps to limit my screentime.<\/p>\n 1. Ditch Social Media<\/p>\n