Excessive smartphone use could lead to ADHD-like symptoms: Study

Excessive use of digital technology may lead to development of ADHD-like symptoms even if the users were not diagnosed with the disorder, a new study has warned.

"With the internet in their pockets, people today are bombarded with notifications - whether from email, text messaging, social media or news apps - anywhere they go," said Kostadin Kushlev from University of Virginia in the US. "We are seeking to better understand how this constant inflow of notifications influences our minds," said Kushlev, PTI  reported.

He added that recent polls had shown that as many as 95 per cent of smartphone users had used their phones during social gatherings; that seven in 10 people used their phones while working. Smartphone owners spent around two hours per day using their phones, he added.

In a two-week experimental study, researchers found that when students kept their phones on ring or vibrate, they reported more symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity than when they kept their phones on silent. "We found the first experimental evidence that smartphone interruptions can cause greater inattention and hyperactivity - symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) - even in people drawn from a nonclinical population," said Kushlev.

"We found the first experimental evidence that smartphone interruptions can cause greater inattention and hyperactivity - symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder - even in people drawn from a nonclinical population," Kushlev said.

The researchers enrolled, 221 students at University of British Columbia in Canada drawn from the general student population. They were were asked to maximise phone interruptions for one week by keeping notification alerts on, and their phones within easy reach.

During another week participants were told to  minimise phone interruptions by keeping alerts off and their phones away.

The researchers found that participants experienced significantly higher levels of inattention and hyperactivity when alerts were turned on. They add, that the results suggest that even people who had not been diagnosed with ADHD might experience some of the disorder's symptoms, including distraction, difficulty focusing and getting bored easily when trying to focus, fidgeting, having trouble sitting still, difficulty doing quiet tasks and activities, and restlessness.