The Effects of Binge Watching
July 10, 2019
Today, binge-watching TV shows is so normalized by society that many people spend an entire rainy day catching up on the latest season of This Is Us without thinking twice. The question I have is, do our viewing habits have more of an impact on us than we think? In recent years, online streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Video have gained popularity. According to Pew Research, 61% of young adults (ages 18-29) watch TV through a streaming service instead of cable. Forbes reported back in March that there are officially more people paying for a streaming service than people paying for cable TV services. It makes sense that streaming services would usurp cable in 2019. Our culture idolizes instant response and gratification, which these streaming services are capable of providing. This need for instant gratification has expanded from watching one or two episodes to entire seasons of shows. While binge watching can be fun in the moment, what are some of the effects that it could have on us?
To start out, binge watching can affect our sleep and energy. According to a 2017 study in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, binge watching can cause poor sleep quality, increased fatigue, and even symptoms of insomnia. As college students, this is probably the last thing we need happening to us, especially when we have so many other things taking away from our sleep. Binge watching can also affect our mental health. The University of Toledo found that binge-watchers reported higher levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. So, why would binge watching your favorite TV show cause more harm than good? According to Dr. Renee Carr, a clinical psychologist, it’s because our body experiences similar effects to a drug-like high. When we are watching our favorite show, our body releases dopamine. Dopamine is an internal reward of pleasure that will reinforce us to do that activity over and over. But with every high, there is always a low. When you finish that show you’d been watching, we actually mourn the loss, according to Dr. John Mayer (no, not the artist), another clinical psychologist. Our bodies react in such a negative way because the lack of that source of dopamine.
How do you know if you’re binge watching too much? You have to look at the rest of your life. Just like other addictions, binge watching can pull us away from socialization and human interaction. Dr. Judy Rosenburg says, “When we substitute TV for human relations, we disconnect from our human nature and substitute for the virtual.” It’s important that we moderate our consumption of TV to maintain a healthy lifestyle. There are 3 questions you can use to help figure out how to keep a balance in your life:
1. When are you watching TV?
2. How much are you watching?
3. What else could you be doing?
These 3 questions relate back to each of the problems that binge-watching can have. If you’re watching TV late and sacrificing sleep, try giving yourself a specific time that you will stop watching at. If you’re starting to experience the high/low effect to the point you’re seeing yourself become more anxious or stressed, cut back on the number of episodes you watch. And if you are thinking about starting a string of binge watching, think through other things you could be doing instead. Binge watching occasionally can be a lot of fun, but just like other things, a surplus of any activity can have a negative effect. So next time you have the opportunity to binge watch the next season of This Is Us, challenge yourself to watch it slowly – one episode a night. Watching in moderation will help with your physical and mental health and give you time to enjoy other parts of life.
Sources
https://apha.confex.com/apha/143am/webprogram/Paper335049.html
https://jcsm.aasm.org/viewabstract.aspx?pid=31062
https://health.clevelandclinic.org/is-it-bad-for-you-to-binge-watch-tv-shows/
https://www.rd.com/culture/binge-watching-unhealthy/
https://www.healthline.com/health-news/binge-watching-tv-can-dull-your-brain
Written by: Andrew Reynolds
Andrew is a Junior Project Management Major, and enjoys writing for the blog because of the opportunity it gives him to grow as a writer and to challenge himself to see current topics and discussions from a view point he may not have otherwise thought about.