Book Review: The Indoor Epidemic by Dr John La Puma

93% Inside Steals Sleep, Focus & Years – The 7% Outdoor Rx Restores Them

Do you spend most of your day indoors?

Do you finish work only to spend the rest of your evening looking at your phone?

Do you struggle with poor sleep, difficulty concentrating, screen fatigue or simply feeling exhausted by the end of the day?

You’re not alone.

Most of us spend around 93% of our lives indoors, surrounded by artificial light, screens and air-conditioned environments. We rarely stop to think about how this affects our health.

Disclosure: This article contains Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

I picked up The Indoor Epidemic by Dr John La Puma because I was curious about how our increasingly indoor, screen-based lifestyles affect our health.

What I didn’t expect was how much it would change the way I think about my own evenings.

Why Should You Read This Book?

This book explains how our modern indoor lifestyle affects our physical and mental health. It explores topics such as sleep, stress, focus, movement, nature, nutrition and the environment around us.

More importantly, it provides practical, evidence-based strategies that you can apply immediately.

What Does the Author Mean by “The Indoor Epidemic”?

Dr John La Puma argues that modern life has quietly moved us indoors.

We work indoors.

We exercise indoors.

We shop indoors.

We relax indoors.

Even our leisure time is often spent in front of another screen.

According to the author, this disconnect from nature has consequences for both our physical and mental wellbeing.

Who Will Benefit Most from This Book?

This book is particularly valuable if you:

• work long hours at a computer,
• spend most of your day sitting,
• experience screen fatigue,
• struggle with poor sleep,
• have neck or back pain,
• want simple evidence-based ways to improve your health.

Does the Author Support His Advice with Scientific Evidence?

Yes.

One of the things I liked most about this book is that it doesn’t rely on opinions or trends.

Dr John La Puma explains the science behind his recommendations and supports them with research, making the advice practical and credible.

How This Book Helped Me Stop Scrolling

The biggest lesson I took from this book wasn’t about plants, fresh air or architecture.

It was about my evenings.

I realised I was spending too much time mindlessly scrolling on my phone.

So I made one simple change.

Instead of scrolling for an hour before bed, I replaced that hour with reading.

It sounds like a small change, but it made my evenings feel calmer, more intentional and far more rewarding.

Sometimes improving your health isn’t about finding more motivation.

Sometimes it’s about changing your environment and replacing one habit with another.

Why This Book is Unique

Most health books focus on nutrition or exercise.

This book focuses on something we often overlook—our environment.

It reminds us that where we spend our time influences how we think, feel and behave.

Sometimes changing your surroundings is easier than relying on willpower.

My Verdict

I highly recommend The Indoor Epidemic to anyone interested in improving their health through evidence-based lifestyle changes.

If you spend most of your day indoors—as many of us do—this book will make you look at your home, workplace and daily habits in a completely different way.

For me, it changed something surprisingly simple.

It helped me stop scrolling.

And sometimes, the smallest changes have the biggest impact.

You can find The Indoor Epidemic by Dr John La Puma here.

Ready to Build Healthier Habits?

Reading a great book is a good start. Turning those ideas into lasting habits is where the real change happens.

If you’d like personalised support to build evidence-based habits around nutrition, exercise and behaviour change, I’d love to help.  → Work With Me