Replacing 30 minutes of social media use per day with physical activity can enhance emotional well-being and reduce stress, German researchers say.
The benefits of exercise lingered as much as 6 months after the end of their study.
Participants who cut back on social media and exercised more experienced greater happiness and less stress related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reduced social media use also correlated with less tobacco consumption.
Social media use exploded with COVID-19’s lockdowns and contact restrictions. Millions turned to Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, and other platforms to escape feelings of isolation, anxiety, and hopelessness.
However, excessive screen time has led to addictive behaviors, stronger emotional attachment to social media, and deeper mental anguish for many people.
Researchers at the Bochum, Germany investigated the effects of reducing social media use (SMU) and increasing physical activity, or both, on emotional well-being and tobacco consumption.
Julia Brailosvskaia, Ph.D., an assistant professor at the university’s Mental Health Research and Treatment Center, led the two-week experiment.
Observed that the interventions they suggested may have helped enhance participants’ satisfaction with life. At a 6-month follow-up, the subjects continued to report spending less time on social media, maintaining physical activity, feeling happier, and smoking fewer cigarettes.
The Journal of Public Health recently published these findings.
Swapping 30 minutes of social media per day with exercise benefits mental health
By Jeanna D. Smiley on September 15, 2022 — Fact checked by Alexandra Sanfins, Ph.D.
Spending less time on social media and more time exercising can enhance emotional well-being and reduce stress, according to research. Thomas Barwick/Getty Images
Replacing 30 minutes of social media use per day with physical activity can enhance emotional well-being and reduce stress, German researchers say.
The benefits of exercise lingered as much as 6 months after the end of their study.
Participants who cut back on social media and exercised more experienced greater happiness and less stress related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reduced social media use also correlated with less tobacco consumption.
Social media use exploded with COVID-19’s lockdowns and contact restrictions. Millions turned to Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, and other platforms to escape feelings of isolation, anxiety, and hopelessness.
However, excessive screen time has led to addictive behaviors, stronger emotional attachment to social media, and deeper mental anguish for many people.
Researchers at the Bochum, Germany investigated the effects of reducing social media use (SMU) and increasing physical activity, or both, on emotional well-being and tobacco consumption.
Julia Brailosvskaia, Ph.D., an assistant professor at the university’s Mental Health Research and Treatment Center, led the two-week experiment.
The interventions they suggested may have helped enhance participants’ satisfaction with life. At a 6-month follow-up, the subjects continued to report spending less time on social media, maintaining physical activity, feeling happier, and smoking fewer cigarettes.
The Journal of Public Health recently published these findings.
Effects of social media use on mental health
The study’s authors noted that mental health “consists of two interrelated but separate dimensions: positive and negative.”
With this paradigm, they hypothesized that the positive dimension of their intervention would “increase life satisfaction and subjective happiness.” The negative dimension would decrease “depression symptoms and addictive tendencies of SMU.”
Medical News Today discussed this study with Dr. Sheldon Zablow, an author and nutritional psychiatrist. He was not involved in the research.
When asked about the effects of social media on mental health, Dr. Zablow asserted:
Wow
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