Dial back habit

Like any drug, we know social media is not good for us but we keep going back to it. We are practically living on smartphones. The device is always at hand, and in hand much of the time. Walking, working, eating, even watching television, we cannot resist scrolling through messages and posts coming in.

One social media company reckons the total time we spend on the phone amounts to nearly two hours a day for 74 per cent of us, which is somewhat less than the average two hours and 48 minutes daily we spend watching television.

Two hours does not seem too much for social media but it is the frequency that presents the problem. If we sat down and devoted two hours a day to catching up with friends, news and the other interests in our lives on social media, there would be nothing to worry about. But few of us do that. We feel the need to check in at any time of the day. It is a habit and it is hard to shake.

But some people are trying. We report today on various products to help — some provided online of course. A Chrome programme allows you to set a limit on the time you can spend on a website in a day. Another replaces your entire Facebook news feed with an inspirational message.

But if the device is addictive, the best way is probably not to rely on it to control yourself. We also suggest taking a deep breath and deleting all social media apps from the phone so you can read them only on your tablet, laptop or desk computer.

Or get in the habit of leaving your phone in a place where you have to go to check it. Make it a rule not to let it into the bedroom. You don’t need it to check it before you go to sleep. Read a book. And you don’t need it to wake you up. Remember alarm clocks? Alarm radios? They will wake you with news you then don’t have to check your phone for.

But perhaps the best resolution to make would be to talk to more people, phone them with a real voice, meet them for a drink and don’t let them have their phone on the table. Enjoy talking face to face again and realise what we are missing.