Average US adult will spend the equivalent of 44 YEARS of their life staring at screens
THE average American will spend nearly half a century staring at screens, a new poll has shown.
Adults in the US will spend the equivalent of 44 years glued to their laptops, phones, and televisions at an average of 6,259 hours each year, according to research published on Wednesday by Vision Direct.
A poll of 2,000 adults in the US found that this equates to a shocking 382,652 hours and 48 minutes over the typical adult lifetime of 60.7 years.
They’ll spend up to four-and-a-half hours a day gazing at TV screens, nearly five hours staring at laptops, and just over three hours using video game consoles.
Smartphones occupy more than four and a half hours of an adult’s daily screen time.
While people usually spend more than 17 hours a day on their screens during normal life, the study found that screen time has increased significantly because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Since nationwide lockdowns started in March, folks are spending an extra two hours glued to their devices to stave off boredom.
More than three-quarters of respondents admitted they’d be lost without their gadgets as social distancing measures are still enforced.
Despite being attached to their devices, people believe less than half the time they spend using them is “productive”.
A quarter of adults who currently work from home feel less productive than ever because of the temptation to slack off using technology.
More than half of those working remotely often take breaks during their workday to peruse Facebook, while 42 percent of employees find themselves watching YouTube videos.
Data found that people are viewing LinkedIn and Instagram more than usual during the pandemic.
Screen time appears to be as much of a necessity as a morning cup of coffee – 60 percent of Americans glance at their phones within five minutes of waking up.
Social media is most likely the first thing that’s checked, with 38 percent of adults saying that it comprises a majority of their screen time.
A worrisome 70 percent of adults say they can feel their eyes being strained from staring at screens too often.
In addition to the health impacts of screen time can have, research has shown that too much technology can negatively affect personal relationships.
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About 60 percent of adults in relationships have argued with their partner over the amount of time they’re fixated on their screens.
Almost have of parents think their kids spend too much time attached to their phones or playing video games, but 75 percent feel hypocritical for criticizing their kids’ screen time when they’re just as guilty.
“There are positives and negatives with screen time, but as long as people are mindful of when to limit use, there doesn’t need to be any long term damage,” said optician Benjamin Dumaine.
