In particular, teenagers and young adults who are overstimulated by
“Most teens who use their gadgets excessively also suffer from sleep deprivation, and as a result, they become irritable and lethargic. They are unable to concentrate or keep up with the rest of the class and their grades start to fall,” Dr Srivastav recently told the Times of India.
According to the latest industry data from research firm Gartner, Smartphone penetration across India reached record high in 2013, with further adoption of smartphones and tablets expected to accelerate throughout 2014. Global smartphone sales outpaced sales of feature phones for the first time, accounting for 53.6% of overall sales last year.
As Indians become more ‘connected’ to their gadgets, they could be suffering more from sleep deprivation.
This phenomenon, however, is far from unique to India. Sleep deprivation is now considered an epidemic and a general health menace across North America and Europe, where consumer adoption of mobile devices mostly exceeds India. As a result, medical experts and sleep specialists around the world have begun encouraging the mobile masses to limit their usage of mobile devices before going to bed. Instead, users should find ways to
Kamran Fallahpour, a clinical psychologist and neuroscientist at
In recent months, a neuroscience-based app called Sleep Genius>$4 turned the world of
With sleep deprivation and sleeping pill-dependence worsening with each passing year across the vast Indian population, medical experts feel that curbing unhealthy sleep habits among teenagers is an urgent priority.
“There are different phases of sleep. Most important is REM or rapid eye movement sleep, a stage of deep sleep during which one’s memories are consolidated, creative thoughts are formed and the mind rejuvenates itself,” explains consultant
Sleep deprivation has been linked to an increased risk of