How Binge-Watching Can Damage One's Health: New Sleep Study Explains Effects
Binge-watching, or continuously watching a TV show one episode after another, is a relatively new habit made possible by on-demand services like Netflix. The resulting loss of sleep could not be any good for health, and a recent study goes into detail to explain why.
Before streaming services like Amazon Prime or Netflix came to the picture, fans of TV shows used to have to wait for their weekly dose of their favorite series. The growth of these on-demand services now gave rise to a new and potentially health-damaging habit: binge-watching.
A recent study published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine set out to learn just how much impact to sleep quality is dealt by a TV binge, or "watching multiple consecutive episodes of the same television show in one sitting on a screen, be it a television, laptop, computer or tablet," as defined in the research.
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The study looked at 423 people, all aged 18 to 25, observing their TV habits and health. Out of this group, 80 percent identified themselves as binge-watchers, and one out of five admitted to having binged several times a week.
In one session, 52 percent recalled watching three to four episodes in one go. The average binge lasts about three hours and eight minutes for the study group.
The result is as expected. The binge-watchers, compared to those who watch in moderation, reported increased fatigue, alertness before bedtime, poorer sleep quality, and general symptoms of insomnia.
The binge-watching sessions not only resulted in lack of sleep, the shows also impacted the quality of what little sleep the bingers were able to get. Jan Van den Bulck, the co-author of the study from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, offers an explanation.
"This intense engagement with television content could require a longer period to 'cool down' before going to sleep, thus affecting sleep overall," the professor said, as quoted by Business Insider.
Robert Oexman, director of the Sleep to Live Institute, lists the health problems that could stem from lack of quality sleep. It starts off with an overall decrease in alertness and a depressed immune system. Learning and memory begin to be affected in as little as two weeks.
"We start seeing increased risk in long term of obesity from changes in leptin and ghrelin; we see increased risk of heart disease; we see an increased risk of stroke; we see increased risk of cancer," he points out.
