Just in time for the latest round of Amazon and Netflix original series, Details would like to remind readers that television binge-watching is nothing more than a form of pleasurable, slow suicide. Here are a few of the ways in which excessive TV viewing is turning people into fleshy silly putty with heart arrhythmia:
- You sleep like shit. Blue light from devices like laptops, televisions, tablets, and phones have been shown to inhibit melatonin production and disturb sleep cycles.
- For every two hours of TV you watch, you are 23 percent more likely to become obese and 14 percent more likely to develop diabetes than those who watch less.
- But that’s okay, because every hour of TV you watch after age 25 reduces your life expectancy by 22 minutes–which really just highlights the importance of binge-watching in those formative young adult years. Earlier research indicated that binge-watching for three hours per day could make you twice as likely to die an early death than those who just watch an hour of TV per day.
- Sitting reduces your lung capacity by a third and can reduce concentration. (Our TV Club reviewers are professionals who stand, walk, or jog while reviewing shows.*)
Details has some suggested solutions to the crippling TV habits you share with nearly everyone on their site, most of which boil down to “maybe watch less TV?” but also says that research shows “seeing someone fit onscreen makes you more likely to want your body to look like his.” So here’s a list of 26 series worth binge-watching to tide you over until the inspirationally fit Daredevil debuts en masse on Netflix on April 10.
*This is not true.