An ordinary smart phone can cause irreparable harm to a person’s health during self-isolation, according to Alexander Ushnikov, Chief Children’s Ophthalmologist of the Rostov Region Healthcare Ministry.
The doctor shared his opinion with Rossiyskaya Gazeta. He believes that by constantly using smart phones during the day, both adults and children may end up with deteriorating vision.
It may be less harmful to use a tablet. Laptops and desktop computers were ranked third based on their health hazard. Interestingly, the doctor did not include TV in his ranking.
Prolonged usage of mobile devices and computers may result in headaches, eye redness and even blurry vision. Eye exercise and breaks from screens could be good remedies in self-isolation. Doctors recommend replacing screens with audio sources of information at least for some time.
As the pandemic continues, people are spending drastically more time looking at their phones at home. Previously, Russian Deputy Minister of Communications and Mass Media Oleg Ivanov clarified that since the beginning of self-isolation, Russian mobile operators have recorded a one-third increased in mobile traffic. Internet providers lowered the quality of video streaming in the wake of increased burden on their networks.