Digital wellbeing: Managing screen time and doomscrolling

Excessive screen time and the habit of ‘doomscrolling’—the endless scrolling through social media to seek stimulation—can negatively impact mental health and lead to social disconnection. Constant engagement with digital content can drain mental energy and encourage unhealthy social comparison.

Health risks associated with prolonged screen use include dry eyes, eye fatigue, and the potential for myopia in children. To mitigate these effects, the Nationaal Jeugdinstituut provides guidelines for maximum recreational screen time, recommending zero screen time for children aged 0 to 2 and a maximum of three hours per day for those aged 12 and older.

Strategies to reduce digital consumption include setting phone screens to grayscale to make them less visually stimulating, establishing phone-free zones in the home, hiding addictive apps in folders, and engaging in offline hobbies or social challenges.