Body Electric: The Hidden Health Costs of the Digital Age and New Science to Reclaim Your Well-Being
Body Electric: The Hidden Health Costs of the Digital Age and New Science to Reclaim Your Well-Being
Body Electric: The Hidden Health Costs of the Digital Age and New Science to Reclaim Your Well-Being
Description
Description
From the award-winning journalist and NPR TED Radio Hour host comes a timely investigation into how screens and sitting are reshaping our bodies--and how a simple shift can change everything.
In today's world, a normal day means sitting in front of a screen for eight to ten hours. Meeting after meeting. Email after email. We leave our desks drained, overstimulated and unfocused, only to go home, sit down again, and scroll some more. The result? Headaches, back pain, restless sleep, and rising rates of preventable disease. We know technology is breaking us down--so why can't we break away? It's a question that Manoush Zomorodi has always wanted to answer. As the host of the NPR's TED Radio Hour and Body Electric podcast, she has interviewed experts, conducted citizen experiments, and sought out research about how our digital lives are changing the way we think, learn, and feel. Now, in Body Electric, she presents an eye-opening investigation into the impact technology and sedentary living has had on our bodies and brains, from breath and eyesight to blood pressure, posture, and productivity, and shares what science (and tens of thousands of participants in a groundbreaking study with Columbia University Medical Center) have taught her--it's the small shifts, not the digital detoxes, that will make us healthier. And all we need is five minutes. Filled with perspective-shifting data and real-life applications and tools, Body Electric is the next must-read for fans of Four Thousand Weeks and The Anxious Generation, and anyone else feeling trapped by their technology.
About the Author
About the Author
Manoush Zomorodi is an award-winning journalist and host of NPR's TED Radio Hour. Her "Body Electric" project was one of the largest public health studies of its kind. She has received two Gracie Awards for Best Radio Host and a Webby Award for Best Podcast Host. Her first book, Bored and Brilliant was published in 2017. Manoush lives in Brooklyn with her family, is half Swiss and half Persian, and loves her Havanese dog.
Critical Reviews
Critical Reviews
"A wonderfully inspiring and intensely practical exploration of how technology took us out of our bodies, and how we can learn to inhabit them again -- thereby transforming not only our physical health, but our creativity, productivity, relationships, and the state of our souls."
--Oliver Burkeman, New York Times bestselling author of Meditations for Mortals and Four Thousand Weeks
--Dan Harris, New York Times bestselling author and host of the 10% Happier podcast "Body Electric is a hard book to put down. (But you'll learn soon you must, even for a few minutes.) Packed with eye-opening research on the life-changing benefits of moving our bodies, and a raft of practical tactics to get us going, it's a compelling, necessary and hopeful read for our busy, burned out, overwhelming and tech-addicted times. This book will make you want to move!"
--Brigid Schulte, New York Times bestselling author of Over Work and director of The Better Life Lab at New America "Body Electric not only brilliantly unpacks the silent toll our screens are taking on our minds and bodies but also offers a science-backed path toward reclaiming our well-being. This book is essential reading for anyone who wants to build a healthier, more intentional relationship with technology."
--Laurie Santos, Professor of Psychology at Yale University and host of The Happiness Lab podcast "We don't have to sacrifice our health to live as digital citizens. Body Electric encourages us to use bodily health as a first step to demanding a digital life that respects our psychological, relational, and personal health. It's a call to reclaim more than our health--it's a call to reclaim our agency."
--Shelly Turkle, New York Times bestselling author of Reclaiming Conversation and founding director of the MIT Initiative on Technology and Self "With warmth, humor, and scads of footnotes, Zomorodi deftly lays out practical ways for people
of all ages and abilities to retool their routines to increase movement and break time. Each
chapter includes summaries of its major points and to-do lists for maximum accessibility. . . .
Anyone looking to (literally and figuratively) unseat tech's detrimental effects on their health will
appreciate this well-researched, pragmatic title."--Library Journal (starred review) "[A] reminder that sustainable change need not be grand to be transformative. . . . This upbeat,
lively volume heartily encourages all ages to take a stand." --Kirkus Reviews
Publishing Information
Publishing Information
Publisher:
Flatiron Books
Pub date:
2026-05-05
Length:
304 pages
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