With the new year comes all kinds of lofty goals and ambitions. And there’s one goal that more of us should probably be making a priority, a healthy aging expert tells TODAY.com.
Making New Year’s resolutions can be a helpful strategy — if you approach them the right way, Dr. Ezekiel J.Emanuel, author of the new book out this month “Eat Your Ice Cream: Six Simple Rules for a Long and Healthy Life,” tells TODAY.com.
“I call them New Year ‘commitments,’ and I make only a small number of them,” he says. And there’s one that’s been on his list for a few years in a row now “because I haven’t quite succeeded,” Emanuel admits.
But it’s back on the list again — and he encourages everyone to make it a goal in 2026.
Healthy Aging Expert’s Resolution: Take a Day Off From Screens
Emanuel encourages everyone to take one day per week off from electronics, like screens and devices.
“I try to make Saturday electronics-free,” says Emanuel, who is also co-director of the Healthcare Transformation Institute and a professor of medical ethics and health policy at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine.
“That’s a very, very important one for me,” he says. “I keep trying, and I’m getting better. It takes a lot of willpower, so I’m not fully there.”
Why It Matters
There are all sorts of mental health and physical benefits of taking a break from screens and electronics, Emanuel says. “You actually feel better mentally,” he says. “You’re less anxious and less depressed.”
Being connected all the time via social media — and the overwhelming sense of FOMO we get without access to our devices — has become a major distraction, he says. In fact, that’s why he prohibits students from having phones and laptops out during classes.
Spending too much time on screens or with social media can disrupt your sleep, affect your ability to concentrate and contribute to mental health issues, like depression and anxiety, especially among kids and young adults.
So if you’d like to improve any of those aspects of your life in 2026, challenge yourself (or even your whole family) to take more time away from technology.
How to Get Started
Taking time away from screens is only one half of this goal. The other half is what you do with that time instead, which can be a great opportunity to be more physically active, catch up with friends IRL or explore an analog interest.
If you can’t spend Saturday scrolling through social media or vegging out in front of the TV, you could develop a new hobby (like gardening or board games), dive into a book, journal, take time to meal prep for the week or get outside.
In particular, Emanuel likes to spend his electronics-free days hiking, biking or making a new dish in the kitchen.
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TODAY’s Expert Tip of the Day series is all about simple strategies to make life a little easier. Every Monday through Friday, different qualified experts share their best advice on diet, fitness, heart health, mental wellness and more.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com