Smartphone usage growing ‘horns’ on skulls of people, study finds

Where smartphones are linked to cause mental issues, a new study has found that some people are even growing weird ‘horns’ on their skull due to them.

Researchers from Australia have discovered a sort of bone growth at the bottom of young adults’ necks, something which looks similar to a horn coming out from the skull’s base. This growth has been attributed to the continuous bending of head while using smartphones or such devices, as per the Washington Post.

The team looked at 218 X-rays of young adults aged between 18 and 30. They found that 41% of them have the bone growth, while men had that particular bone grown more as compared to women.

The size of the bone growths ranging from 10 to 31 millimeters suggested that they took time to develop, most likely from childhood. Hence, while smartphone use might not be entirely linked to the peculiar bone growth, researchers say that this is a possibility.

One of the lead researchers David Shahar stated, “Shifting the head forwards results in the transfer of the head’s weight from the bones of the spine to the muscles at the back of the neck and head.”

According to The Sun, he said that once the growths have formed, they might not cause any damage, but they are unlikely to go away ever.

However, the researchers are not recommending to log off of the devices completely, but instead people can check in with the body from time to time before adapting the habit and posture, as per Digital Trends.

“The answer is not necessarily swearing off technology. At least, there are less drastic interventions,” one of the lead researchers Mark Sayers told Washington Post. “What we need are coping mechanisms that reflect how important technology has become in our lives.”