Our way of life has seen a huge change in the past couple of years. We have moved from an analog to a digital lifestyle in what seems like a blink of the eye. The amount of technology we are surrounded by and interact with on a daily basis is impressive. With this change comes some negative impacts. It is pretty obvious that the longer you stare at a screen, the more negative health effects are encountered.

A new study has found that this screen time may not be the best indicator of health. Researchers have found that” the risks associated with sedentary behavior are not the same for everyone.” Those with higher levels of strength and fitness don’t see the same negative health effects as those who live a sedentary lifestyle. One of the most measurable and efficient way to detect early health risks is actually grip strength. The better grip… usually the more active you are!

Journal Reference:

Carlos A. Celis-Morales, Donald M. Lyall, Lewis Steell, Stuart R. Gray, Stamatina Iliodromiti, Jana Anderson, Daniel F. Mackay, Paul Welsh, Thomas Yates, Jill P. Pell, Naveed Sattar, Jason M. R. Gill. Associations of discretionary screen time with mortality, cardiovascular disease and cancer are attenuated by strength, fitness and physical activity: findings from the UK Biobank study. BMC Medicine, 2018; 16 (1) DOI: 10.1186/s12916-018-1063-1