Scientists have discovered that a simple manipulation on our smartphones can rejuvenate our brain, increasing our cognitive abilities and generally improving our daily lives.
Many of us use a smartphone several times a day, every day. The devices that were once presented as pocket computers have become indispensable, sometimes excessively so. And if we are very interested in the question of mobile use by children, to the point of wanting to ban it, what about adults? This inevitably has an effect whose consequences we do not yet fully measure.
To get to the bottom of this, researchers from the University of British Columbia conducted a study. A total of 400 students and adults participated. What they were asked is extremely simple: use an application developed for the occasion that cuts off Internet access on their smartphones. They could still use it to make calls and send messages, but nothing more. After 2 weeks, the scientists carried out several measurements and the results obtained are astonishing.
For a brain younger than your age, just do this on your smartphone
The volunteers show a very significant improvement in their sustained attention, that is, the ability to concentrate on a single task. It is at the level of someone who is 10 years younger. And that's not all. Many explain that they sleep better and that their rest is of better quality. The anxiety levels measured are also significantly lower, especially among those who spent a lot of time on social networks before the study.
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These findings are not fleeting. Several months later, they are still there in the vast majority of subjects. The researchers partly explain this by what they did to instead of spending time on their smartphone: exercising, going out, seeing friends... All these activities offer cognitive stimulation that can "rejuvenate your brain." The conclusion is that you shouldn't get rid of your mobile completely, but you should manage to regularly take time away from it.
Source: PNAS Nexus
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