Too Much Internet May Be Bad for Teenagers
The Internetplays a bigpart in humanlife. We use it for work and entertainment. We canfindnewrecipes on the Internet or advice on stayinghealthy. We canevenuse it to learn a newlanguage. We use the Internet to connectwithfamily and friends and stay in touchwithissues we careabout.
As far as the Internetbeing a part of ourlives – well, that train has left the station. That expressionmeansthere is no goingback. Ifyoupreferboating, youcansaythat ship has sailed.A newstudyfinds that heavyInternetusemay be connected to highbloodpressure in an unlikelygroup -- teenagers.Highbloodpressuremakesyourheart and blood vessels worktoohard. Overtime, this extrastrainincreasesyourrisk of a heartattack or stroke.Highbloodpressurecanalsocauseheart and kidneydisease. It is alsocloselylinked to someforms of dementia, a braindisease. Dementia is marked by memorydisorders, personalitychanges, and a reducedability to reason.
The researcherssay the study is the first to connectheavywebuse and highbloodpressure. Otherresearch has connected that heavyInternetusewithhealthproblemsincludinganxiety, depression and obesity.The leadresearcher of the study is AndreaCassidy-Bushrow. In a statement she said, "Using the Internet is part of ourdailylife but it shouldn't consume us."
For the purpose of the study, she explains, teensconsideredheavyInternetuserswereonline on “average 25 hours a week."Ms. Cassidy-Bushrowadds that it is important for teens to take "regularbreaks from theircomputers or smartphones” and to dosome “kind of physicalactivity."Shealsosuggests that parentslimittheirchildren's use of the Internet to twohours a day, fivedays a week.
The Centers for DiseaseControl and Preventionsays, 70 million, or 29%, of Americanadultshavehighbloodpressure. Justmorethanhalf of thosepeoplehavetakensteps to control it. The CDCestimates that highbloodpressurecosts the UnitedStates $46 billioneachyear.