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Two years ago, a doctor in France, Yannick Guillodo, wanted people to use their smartphones less.
He made a group of 500 people to try that. But, only about 125 people or 25% of them used their phone less. The 125 people that used their phones less became more active.
Guillodo wrote a book called “Smartphones Kill”. He said phones make us sit more. Sitting too much can make us sick. We can get health problems like cancer and heart problems.
A professor in the U.S., Andrew Lepp, found the same thing. He said people use their phones even when they exercise. This makes their exercise worse, they don’t try so hard.
Lepp talked about “active couch potatoes”. These are people who exercise sometimes but also sit a lot. That’s also not healthy.
A professor in London, Paul Elliott, is also studying this. He found a link between phone use and body weight in teenagers. This might be because we don’t sleep well after using phones.
Vocabulary
- Doctor – A person who helps us when we are sick; 👩⚕️
- Active – able to do something physically; move around; mobile; energetic
- Kill – To make something or someone stop living; murder
- Health – How well your body is working; a person’s mental or physical condition;
- Cancer – a disease in which some of the body’s cells grow uncontrollably and spread to other parts of the body
- Heart – The part of your body that pumps blood everywhere; 💓
- Professor – a teacher at a university
- Find – realize; learn; discover;
- Even – Happening all the time; also; used to show that something is surprising, unusual, unexpected, or extreme
- Exercise – Activities that make your body strong and healthy;
- Worse – Not as good as something else; “more bad”;
- Try hard – To do your best at something; to give a lot of effort
- Couch potato – Someone who sits on the couch a lot and doesn’t move much
- Healthy – When your body is working well;
- Study – to learn more; to research;
- Link – A connection between two things
- Use – the action of using something;
- Body weight – How heavy your body is; How much your body weighs
- Teenager – A person who is between 13 and 19 years old
Discussion Questions
- Why do you think it’s hard for people to use their smartphones less?
- Do you use your phone too much? How do you think we can help people to use their smartphones less?
- How do you think digital technology like computers and smartphones can affect sleep?
- What are some other health problems using your smartphone too much could cause? Anything with your eyes, posture or brain?
- English teachers looking for teaching ideas, check out my post on using easy news articles for lessons.
- English learners looking for study ideas, check out my post on using news stories for English practice.
Original Story
Fill-in-the-Blank Listening Practice
Two years ______, a doctor in France, Yannick Guillodo, wanted people to use ______ smartphones less.
He made a group of ______ people to try that. But, only about 125 people or ______% of them used their phone less. The 125 people that ______ their phones less became more active.
Guillodo ______ a book called “Smartphones Kill”. He said phones make us ______ more. Sitting too much can make us ______. We can get health problems like cancer and ______ problems.
A professor in the U.S., Andrew Lepp, ______ the same thing. He said people use their phones even when they ______. This makes their exercise worse, they don’t ______ so hard.
Lepp talked about “active couch ______”. These are people who exercise sometimes but also sit a ______. That’s also not healthy.
A ______ in London, Paul Elliott, is also studying this. He found a ______ between phone use and body weight in teenagers. This ______ be because we don’t sleep well after using ______.
