KARIMNAGAR: At a time when fasting for religious reasons, better skin or weight loss has made a comeback in urban areas, the residents of Karimnagar have embraced a different kind of fast — one aimed at breaking their addiction to smartphones. E-fasting is the trend that is taking the city by storm, especially with doctors advising people to keep away from their electronic devices during holidays.
Dr Ch Ramana Chary, an ENT specialist, tells TNIE that e-fasting is a good way to maintain one’s health. “Overuse of cell phones and computers leads to health problems like dryness of eyes, neck pain, headache and ear problems,” he says.
The ENT doctor advises people against using earphones and headphone as they damage eardrums leading to tinnitus, itching and dizziness. Finally, one may suffer from loss of hearing, he says, warning that this addiction could also lead to nomophobia, a condition when a person experiences fear or anxiety about not having phone connectivity.
Though nowadays cell phones have become indispensable for communication, one must minimise the use of cell phones for a healthy life, he advises. “It would be better for people to put their phones on silent mode or switch them off after office or business hours,” Dr Chary suggests.
People should use speaker phone options or messaging or chatting methods to protect the health of their ears and eyes, he says.
Sanjeevan Purohit of Mahadev Opticals in the city told TNIE that a majority of his customers ask for anti-radiation glasses to avoid infections like itching and redness in the eye after spending hours in front of a computer screen.
An advertisement agency representative, Ashok, has stopped talking on the mobile phone after encountering ear problems. He says he was alarmed upon finding pus oozing from one of his ears. Now, he communicates with his clients only through SMS or WhatsApp messages.
A retired teacher, Raji Reddy, says e-fasting is akin to old-age practise of abstaining from food on certain days in a week, being observed by people for a healthy life. “E-fasting once a week will help us focus on other important things and spend quality time with family,” says Raji Reddy.
Mamatha, a homemaker, is worried about his two-year-old kid getting addicted to a smartphone. She uses the smartphone to teach rhymes to her child. But, Mamatha wants to avoid it as much as possible.