Can Streaming Take a Toll on Your Health?

Many people indulge in streaming TV for hours at a time as a form of relaxation. But those so-called binge-watchers report higher levels of stress, anxiety and depression.

That finding, from a study co-authored by Jessica Kruger, a UB clinical assistant professor of community health and health behavior, highlights how little even scientists know about this relatively new phenomenon.

For instance, it’s not known if all that screen time leads to negative emotions—or vice versa, says Kruger.  

“Are you stressed, anxious and depressed, and then you watch TV? Or do you watch TV, realize you have so much to do, and then become stressed, anxious and depressed?”

One thing is clear: “Binge-watching is highly understudied and under-discussed,” she says.

Beyond stress levels, excessive television-watching can lead to overeating and obesity.

“If you’re sitting there binge-watching for six hours, not only are you sedentary, but you’re probably also eating whatever’s in front of you and not thinking about it,” Kruger says.

It can also disrupt sleep patterns and cause sleep deprivation. Then there are the societal impacts of millions of people isolating themselves to watch their favorite TV shows.

Another concern associated with binge-watching is “show hole.” Explains Kruger: “People who are done watching a series feel really sad, lost, a sense of emptiness because their favorite characters, who now feel like friends, are gone.”

While the consequences of binge-watching may not seem like the most pressing health topic to study, they are important to understand.

“There’s been a lot of research on TV addiction, but not so much on binge-watching and its effects because this is a new thing,” says Kruger, who first decided to study binge-watching as a PhD student when a fellow doctoral candidate mentioned spending the weekend watching “House of Cards” (“I thought to myself, ‘That’s probably not healthy for you,’” she remembers). Her groundbreaking work on the phenomenon has now made her a sought-after expert.

“We need to think more thoroughly about how technology is impacting human behavior, and how that behavior is affecting people’s health,” she says.