Beyond the Glow: Balancing Technology with Health in the Digital Age

It’s 2am and you can’t sleep. You’re tired from work or school, and the night is your only
me-time. You’re aware that tomorrow would be another tiring day for you, so you make the most
of the little time you have at night, and of course, there’s no other way to entertain yourself than
using your phone. Those little devices that emits light was enough to keep you entertained for a
short time, or maybe for the whole night. Time feels slow and so worth it that you don’t even feel
tired or sleepy while watching some funny videos on TikTok, not knowing the effects of such
activity. In today’s world, the rise of technology and information has been very common. We live
in what scientists and scholars now call the Information Age, where access to knowledge,
communication, and entertainment is just a click away. Unlike in the past generations, we now
carry entire libraries, workplaces, and even social lives inside a small device. But with this
progress comes a price. From cellphones (CPs) to personal computers (PCs) to television
screens, we are surrounded by gadgets that were made to make life easier. And yet, they also
expose us to blue light, radiation, and psychological effects that we rarely pay attention to. These
devices are no longer just tools, they’ve become a part of our routines, our relationships, and
even our identity. As we stare into these glowing screens for hours, often past midnight, we
unknowingly trigger changes in our brain. Screen time doesn’t just fill time, it changes the way
we feel, think, and cope with life. That’s where the real issue begins: when screen use becomes a
quiet enemy to our physical and mental health. And of course, as we students who studies
science and technology, we came to a conclusion to use modern means to combat the harmful
use of these tools. We thought that if our technology has evolved to keep us engaged, maybe it’s
time for it to evolve again and this time, to help protect our well-being. In the following sections,
this paper explores how innovation can be part of the solution.

We as a students, it’s normal that we look to our cellphones or laptop screens all day. May
it be doing classworks, online activities, or just leisurely scrolling through your news feed, it’s all
part of our normal day. But on some occasions, looking at those artificial light from our screens
for a sustained period of time can contribute to some major effects on our body that we, most of
the time, rarely pay our attention to. The effects can be classified into two major categories: the
Physiological and Psychological effects of prolonged exposure to gadget screens. Let’s start with
the Physiological one. According to a study by Ohio State Health (2024), prolonged screen
exposure especially at night, can interfere with our body’s natural sleep rhythm. That’s because
screens emit blue light, which can delay the release of melatonin. If you dont know what
melatonin is, it’s the hormone that helps us fall asleep. For example, one of our group members
is taking melatonin gummies to help his sleep because of insomnia that is caused by too much
blue light of his phone. This might not sound serious at first, but when this happens consistently,
it leads to poor sleep quality or even chronic sleep deprivation. And when we’re sleep-deprived,
our body doesn’t just feel tired, it also struggles to repair itself, making us more prone to
headaches, blurryvision, and fatigue during the day. Excessive screen time is associated with
poor sleep and risk factors for cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure, obesity, low
HDL cholesterol, poor stress regulation (high sympathetic arousal and cortisol dysregulation),
and Insulin Resistance. In fact, Dr. Phillip Yuhas, an optometrist mentioned in the study,
explained that extended screen use can cause what’s known as digital eye strain, which includes
symptoms like dryness, irritation, and difficulty focusing after long hours on screens (Ohio State
Health, 2024). As students, it’s not uncommon for us to look at our gadgets for more than 6 to 8
hours a day, especially during exam weeks or online submissions. We often ignore the physical
signs our body gives us, like neck and back pain, brushing them off as “normal,” when in reality,
they’re our body’s way of saying it’s exhausted.

While the body is affected physically, the mind also suffers silently. It’s already alarming
that these technologies intended to help us have negative effects to us physically, it’s more
concerning when it extends to our mental health. It’s worrying especially to the students like us,
who depend on our devices everyday. According to a large-scale study cited by Nexus Health
Systems (2023), youth who are heavy screen users, especially those aged 14 to 17, were found to
be twice as likely to be diagnosed with mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and even
aggressive behavior. The study, conducted by Yale and Columbia University, analyzed data from
over 5,100 adolescents, confirming that excessive screen time has a measurable connection to
mental distress. This shows that our mental health can silently deteriorate the more we overuse
screens without even realizing it.

As students, we often feel burnt out, unmotivated, or overwhelmed, but sometimes we

don’t connect these feelings to our habits. One of our group members personally thought that her
habit of using social media on her phone as a distraction from everyday stress can help her ease
her suffering, but in fact, it isn’t. Constantly scrolling through social media can lead to unrealistic
comparisons, low self-esteem, and even a fear of missing out (FOMO), which adds to our
anxiety. We may not talk about it, but many of us feel more irritable, unproductive, or
emotionally drained after hours of digital use. The article also encourages setting healthy screen
boundaries and paying attention to mental symptoms before they worsen (Nexus Health Systems,
2023). Mental health may be harder to see, but it deserves just as much attention as the physical
symptoms we already notice.

With all those major issues accompanied by screen-related harm, is there a way to fix it?
Our answer is yes. They say that making a cure for snake bite requires the venom itself so we too
will use technology to combat it’s harmful side effects, starting with practical ones. We can’t
entirely avoid screen-times so we’re making a sustained solution for it. Start by practicing the
20-20-20 rule. Every 20 minutes, look 20 feet away for 20 seconds. That should help you get
yourself back from all those chaotic information that’s fogging your brain through your device.
Simple actions like putting away your phone in our another room while studying or using
planners instead of apps can contribute to the positive changes too. And also, school should
make an effort to allow face-to-face classes more often to lessen screen-time during online
classes. This move will allow students to have more positive impact on their student and social
life because interactions will be happening in real time, and not through screens, giving them
stronger bonds and trust through their actual experience.

But let’s be real. Since we’re already surrounded by technology, why not use it to our
advantage? There are now plenty of tools and apps that are made specifically to help us balance
our screen time. For example, most phones already have built-in screen time monitors like
Digital Wellbeing on Android and Screen Time on iPhones. These let us track how long we use
certain apps and even set limits so we don’t overdo it. Some of us in the group have tried using
apps like “Forest,” which rewards you with a growing virtual tree if you don’t touch your phone
for a set time it sounds silly, but it actually works if you’re trying to focus. There are also blue
light filter apps like “f.lux” or “Night Shift” that adjust your screen’s lighting to reduce eye
strain and help your brain wind down before sleep. And now, some laptops and phones are even
getting AI features that suggest screen breaks based on your usage patterns. We think that in the
near future, tech companies can develop even smarter wellness tools, like adaptive brightness
that senses not just light but also our mood, or wearables that alert you when your mental stress
is high based on screen use. According to Harvard Medical School (2020), using blue light
filtering software at night can actually help restore natural sleep rhythms by reducing melatonin
suppression. So yeah, technology can be part of the problem, but with the right features and a
little self-control, it can also be the solution (Harvard Health Publishing, 2020).

To sum it all up, we understand that we cannot entirely avoid using gadgets as now we
are in the information age transitioning into the ‘era of intelligence’, using technological devices
is already a part of our daily lives. It helps us in many ways like chores, entertainment, studies,
work, or even development. Progress is not bad, but focusing too much on it, resulting in a lot of
sacrifice is not worth it to that extend. We should learn to balance things, and more importantly,
we should take care of ourselves first. We need technology but also without us, innovation will
not flourish. I think we need to go back to our origins first, study our history, refresh the timeline,
to better use it to our current generation, and also help a better future to be established as well.
We need to be the initiators for better practices as youth is the key for the next and progressive
generation, but also, with the help of innovations through science and technology. In the end, it’s
not just about keeping up with technology, it’s about making sure we don’t lose ourselves in the
process.

REFERENCES

• American Academy of Pediatrics. (2020). Media and children communication toolkit.

https://www.aap.org/en/patient-care/media-and-children/

• Nexus Health Systems. (2023). Excessive screen time: The mental health effects in
children and adolescents. https://nexushealthsystems.com/excessive-screen-time-mental-
health-issues/

• Ohio State Health. (2024, January 16). How screen time affects your eyes, sleep, and
overall health. Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.
https://wexnermedical.osu.edu/blog/how-screen-time-affects-your-eyes-sleep-and-overall-
health

• Optica. (2022, July 5). Researchers develop blue-light blocking contact lens to improve
sleep and reduce eye strain.
https://www.optica.org/en-us/about/newsroom/news_releases/2022/blue-
blocking_contact_lenses/