What will happen if you don't use your phone for just three days, a surprising revelation in a brain study

Nowadays, smartphone has become a part of people's life. The phone stays with us all day long, whether we are awake or asleep. People even use the phone in the toilet. Meanwhile, a study has come out which says that staying away from the phone for just 72 hours affects brain activity. 25 young adults aged 18-30 years were included in the study.

Technology Desk, New Delhi. How far is your phone from you right now? When was the last time you looked at it? For many of us, these digital devices are almost always in our hands and a new study highlights the effects on brain activity that can occur when we reduce our use of them.

A recent study found that giving up your smartphone for just three days can have a significant impact on your brain's activity. The research was conducted by scientists from Germany's Heidelberg University and the University of Cologne, and involved 25 young adults aged between 18 and 30. Participants were asked to limit phone use for 72 hours, allowing only essential communication and work tasks.

Changes seen in brain activation

Before and after the phone 'diet', participants underwent MRI scans and psychological tests to see how reducing phone use affected their brain patterns. The results showed changes in brain activation that were related to neurotransmitter systems associated with addiction.

"We used a longitudinal approach to examine the effects of smartphone restriction in smartphone users," the researchers wrote in their published paper. "Relationships were found between changes in brain activation over time and neurotransmitter systems related to addiction."

Brain activity changes

During the scans, participants were shown a variety of images, including pictures of smartphones (both on and off), as well as neutral images such as boats and flowers. The study shows that even short-term smartphone restriction can alter brain activity, giving insight into how digital devices affect our neural patterns.

"Our data do not separate cravings for smartphone use and cravings for social interaction, which are nowadays two closely intertwined processes," the researchers wrote.

'Although our data show very robust results without fully explaining these processes, future studies should try to address this aspect explicitly.'

PC:Jagran