More people around the world enjoy more comforts and conveniences than ever before, and we are living longer. However, I believe that now is not the best time to live, as these advances have had a negative impact on both our physical and mental health.
Over the past 100 years, humans have seen an increase in the use of screens, whether televisions, cell phones, or computers. While screens allow us to see many areas without leaving home, they can create blue light that strains the eyes, dries out the eyes, and leads to reduced vision. For example, a middle-aged woman in China stayed up all night watching movies on her smartphone every night. After a while, she felt pain in her eyes, along with terrible headaches, so she had to go to the hospital for examination. The results showed that she had acute glaucoma, causing blurred vision. After that, even though she had surgery, her eyesight still did not improve, causing her to become almost completely blind.
Heavy reliance on electronic devices leads to increased daily screen time, which has negative effects on mental health, such as increased stress, anxiety, and sleep disorders. Internet addiction is becoming a serious general health problem in many countries on many different continents, including our own in Asia. It has been proven that one of the many reasons why more and more people are affected by depression and feel even more isolated is because of their addiction to mobile phones and other digital devices.
In conclusion, the progress that civilization has made is a good achievement, but I strongly believe that technology can bring many limitations as well as benefits to our health and well-being unless we learn how to use it moderately and responsibly.