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A new study found that by turning off the email updates on your mobile phones and laptops, you can significantly reduce your stress levels. A recent report published by London-based Future Work Center explores how email pressure affects your work-life balance. The researchers call the emails "double-edged sword" that are definitely useful as a means of communication but can also cause a lot of stress. One habit that causes maximum stress is leaving the email alert on all day and checking your emails first thing in the morning or last thing late at night, reported Independent.

According to the researchers, the best way to combat stress is to only launch the email application when you are going to be using it. You should close the email for some time in between. The research also established a link between "email checking times (early morning and late at night) and perceptions of email pressure". "It would be inappropriate of us to instruct people to stop checking their email at a time that suits them," said the study. "But consider how useful you feel it is to begin your working day so early or end it so late. It's also worth considering the potential impact your very early or very late emails have on your colleagues," as reported by Independent.

For the purpose of the study, about 2,000 people were surveyed across various industries in UK. People who underwent high email pressure said that it also affected their lives at home adversely, said the study. It also revealed that younger people experience more pressure from their emails but this anxiety declines with age. Even your job type also impacts the email pressure that one feels. As per the findings, the managers experienced "significantly higher levels of perceived email pressure" as compared to those at the entry-level positions, reports Malaysian Digest