Could Netflix Be Causing Your Anxiety?

It’s one of our favourite ways to switch off in the evening. We change into our PJs, climb into bed and load up the latest season of House Of Cards for an hours-long Netflix binge (complete with a multipack of Tayto and a bar of Galaxy if you’re really doing it right.)

But as it turns out, our Netflix habit may be doing more harm than good as a study published by the American Public Health Association has linked binge-watching to an increase in anxiety and depression.

The study found that many of us are watching between two and five hours of continuous TV a day and concluded that binge-watching our favourite shows led to poor mental health, with the researchers even labelling it a “growing mental health concern.”

It makes sense we guess. If you’re hauled up in your room alone all day long, eating bad food and watching grizzly murder docs you’re probably not going to be in the best frame of mind.

But it’s like everything, doing it in moderation is what’s key so maybe limit your next Netflix and Chill sesh to a two-episode maximum, yeah?

• Anxiety
• depression
• mental health