The benefits of a digital detox
Image credit: marvelous via Unsplash
Research suggests that cutting back on smartphone and social media use can improve mental health, sleep, and overall well-being. Spending less time on screens may also help restore attention span and improve focus, even if the reduction is only partial rather than a complete detox. The findings show that small, practical changes can still have meaningful effects by lowering constant digital overload. Easy habits such as keeping your phone out of the bedroom at night and using app time limits are simple ways to begin.
Source
Noah Castelo, Kostadin Kushlev, Adrian F Ward, Michael Esterman, Peter B Reiner, Blocking mobile internet on smartphones improves sustained attention, mental health, and subjective well-being, PNAS Nexus, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2025, pgaf017, https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgaf017
Additional Reading
https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/04/09/social-media-detox/
https://www.georgetown.edu/news/digital-detox-reduce-screen-time-benefits/