Disabling internet and social media access on your smartphone, temporarily limiting usage to calls and SMS, can significantly improve emotional well-being, sleep, human relationships, and concentration.

noli's read

Mark Hyman cites a genuine randomized controlled trial (RCT) published in February 2025 in the journal PNAS Nexus (Castelo et al.), which rigorously evaluated the effects of digital disconnection. The study causally demonstrates that a two-week break from mobile internet (blocking web access while maintaining calls and SMS) improves attention, subjective well-being, and daily serenity. The authors validate one of the creator's more surprising claims: the mitigation of low mood and sadness following this disconnection proved superior to the average effects typically observed with standard mood regulation solutions. Furthermore, the boost in energy, improved sleep, and reconnection with nature are scientifically supported by the analysis of participants' behaviors as they reinvested their free time offline. A few nuances are worth noting: the mobile internet restriction lasted for two weeks (within a four-week overall protocol) rather than four full weeks, and the idea of enjoying the taste of food more is a well-intentioned extrapolation related to mindfulness rather than a direct measurement from the study. Nevertheless, the general approach is also supported by another RCT published in 2025 (Pieh et al.), confirming that reducing screen time to less than two hours per day improves vitality and the quality of rest in just three weeks.

the sources

1. 1Hunt MG, Marx R, Lipson C, Young J. 2018
2. 2Yang J, Fu X, Liao X, Li Y. 2019