Using e-mail has every potential to harm our brains. In our modern world, it is not necessarily a choice to use a computer as a means of communication. After all, technology is an essential tool in our social circles. Indeed, e-mail has made communication much easier for the world, but it also wields the power to destroy our ability to think and live our lives. Our excessive reliance on e-mail has already transformed the way we allocate our valuable time for the worse.

Smartphones have allowed companies to become more productive by enabling employees to stay connected via e-mail. We can work anywhere, at any time, with access to e-mail. However, this 24/7 connection comes with its dire consequences.

Smartphones have made e-mailing and texting too convenient for most of us to resist. The invention of the Blackberry has cultivated a generation of “crackberry” addicts, notorious for checking e-mails and posting Facebook updates multiple times an hour. This culture of obsessive e-mail use causes problems that harm our brains. As a result, many now face social, mental and physical health problems.

By spending so much of our time inside our e-mail inboxes, we are developing social problems. E-mail has expanded work beyond the typical 9 to 5 job. Now, many employees are expected to be at job-related becks and calls any time of the day, which severely cuts into time otherwise spent with family and friends. The stress of overworking and the added duty of navigating through a flood of emails on a regular basis only make us less likely to set aside time for the people we care about.

Checking our e-mail has become the first priority in the morning and the last thing we have to do before we go to bed. As John Freeman, the author of the book The Tyranny of E-mail sees it, we feel rewarded when we receive an e-mail, for it is a reminder that other people acknowledge and somewhat value our existence. In fact, many of us crave to check our e-mails because of our desire to feel rewarded as often as we can.

There are also cases where people only like to communicate through email. They prefer to avoid any form of direct interaction, which results in a deterioration of their verbal communication skills over time—a skill highly essential in the world beyond cyberspace.

E-mailing on computers and phones for long periods of time is also harmful to our physical health. When we stare at our bright, high-contrast screens for many hours on end, it damages our eyes and gives us headaches.

Furthermore, it is more challenging to convey our emotions and intentions in an e-mail as opposed to talking face to face. What we write can often be misconstrued. Case-in point: sarcasm. Even with the full context of a conversation, sarcasm is not always understood. The perfect solution would be to always use a tag anytime we’re being sarcastic in an e-mail .

To top it all off, e-mail has left us dependent and vulnerable. Because most of our personal information is digitized, we no longer remember many of the small but important details in life: phone numbers, birthdays, meeting dates, even email addresses! Our brains are not getting the same level of exercise, which doesn’t bode well for a generation already associated with being lazy. We are also left very lost and helpless when our computers fail us during an emergency.

Our reliance on e-mail, in addition to the staggering amount of time that we as a society spend on it, is alarming for our health. While email has the potential to make us more productive, our extreme dependence on it consumes far too much of our time—time that can easily be used better.

According to About.com, around 1.3 billion emails are sent every day throughout our unceasingly communicating world. There is constantly fresh knowledge to be shared and impassioned emotions to be expressed. A young, loving child may send a simple email to share words of hope and affection to his father fighting a cold bloody war far from home. Meanwhile, a business man may send an email to secure employment that will change his family’s life. Ultimately, only email allows us to remain connected to the world at large, and truly develop our cognitive abilities.

The universal availability of email allows global citizens to communicate with one another constantly. This consistent interaction, consequently, allows us to ameliorate the way in which we express ourselves. Opportunities to build relationships, express emotions, share useful knowledge, develop vital cognitive skills, and connect with our world are ever present with this seemingly innocuous form of communication. It is clear that email has a collection of positive results that enriches our minds.

However, opponents of the email phenomenon are tenacious in their denial of the fact that email is truly beneficial. It has been argued that email causes people to become inarticulate and brainless, however, that is not the case. The great philosopher Rene Descartes once said, “It is not enough to have a good mind, but to use it well.” Therefore if one knows how to use email efficiently, yet uses it inefficiently by using various slang and shorthand, then it is obvious that they will not benefit from its exceptional cognitive impact. As one communicates every day their mind becomes more attentive, allowing them to gather all the skills and knowledge that are at their disposal. One must continue to employ their knowledge while using email, so that they can receive the best results. They must use it to discover new information or to express their ideas and emotions. Nonetheless, while it is true that email can rot your brain, so can many other activities. And as it remains to be true in regard to these other pastimes, it is how you practice these endeavors that has prime importance.

All in all, the possibilities are endless for one who knows how to use this method of communication effectively. This medium allows us to enhance our brain, rather than cause it to decay. It is up to you, as an intelligent global citizen, to use your mind effectively and discover the potential that this world of emailing has to offer.

“Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.”
- Anton Chekhov

What do students, teachers, parents, principals, doctors, engineers, police, lawyers, and convicted criminals all have in common? Chances are they have at least one e-mail account. Obviously I have not interviewed every single one of them, but if you work for the government you automatically get an e-mail account. And if you don’t? Well it’s just an indispensably useful tool.

Whether you are interested in sending family photos to your aunt living half-way across the world, or you don’t want to waste any paper handing in assignments, e-mail is right for you. Is it complicated to set up? Nowadays even a first time web user can set-up their own personal link to the rest of the world’s population in a matter of minutes. Wow mister an invention that nifty must cost a million dollars. Well nondescript boy from the 50s, it may seem crazy, but most websites offer e-mail accounts absolutely FREE!

There’s gotta be a catch mister… do you sprout fins and arms in weird places from overuse? Ha ha, what an imagination you have there son, but no, nothing quite so ghastly. Well what then? Son, I don’t want you to panic, but there has been some concern over e-mail’s ability to ROT YOUR BRAIN! Golly jeepers mister, the government should do something about it right away! Well hold on their scout. You haven’t heard the facts yet.

People are correct in fearing excessive e-mailing could affect your brain, eyes, spine, and wrists. Of course this is not because of e-mail; the same concerns apply to any ergonomically unsound excessive repetitive and long-term use of the computer. A proper chair, good lighting, and a special keyboard could solve all these problems. And it never hurts to have an active and balanced lifestyle.

But if I’m always sending my friends these great e-mails, when will I see them? One of the greatest things about e-mail is that there’s absolutely no set time commitment involved. You can e-mail as much or as little as you want, and hey, even if you do e-mail a lot, it could always be to make plans.

But if it’s so easy, isn’t it more tempting to stay inside? You may be right, statistics have shown that people do have a tendency to give into temptations of convenience, even if it’s bad for them. Luckily, my young fictional friend, people have the freedom of choice. E-mail does pose a health risk if it is used in excess, but so do most human activities. E-mail is no special danger, just another more convenient step in the bright direction for the human species.

Wow, thanks mister this sure has been informative. Any time buddy. Just remember it’s all about taking responsibility for your own health, and utilizing the wonderful technology available to you while making balanced activity choices. E-mail can even be used to improve your health. There are many nutrition and exercise sites on the internet that send out daily tips in the form of e-mails, and that’s just the beginning.

This is a message not actually from the Government of Canada, but I’m sure this is a message they would give if I hadn’t given it first.