Britons on their phones even at dinner

The majority of Britons can not make it through dinner at home without checking their phone, such is our addiction to technology, new research from YouGov claims.

According to the report, 55% of those surveyed said they checked their phone during dinner, while 53% said they look at their phone even when dining out with friends or family.

More than half (54%) said they could not go more than two days without their device before it bothered them.

Both Google and Apple have responded to the growing debate about the impact of mobile

“Smartphones are taking over our lives”

phone use on public health by introducing usage tracking tools and screen time-limiting features to their devices in an effort to improve digital wellbeing.

National campaigns such as Scroll Free September have also been introduced in an attempt to raise awareness of the issue and help users cut down on their mobile device use.

The research was carried out to mark YouGov’s partnership with the new The Future Starts Here exhibition at the V&A Museum in London, which examines Britain’s increasing addiction to mobile devices and how this is changing human interaction.

Russell Feldman, director of digital, media and technology research at YouGov, said: “It will have escaped no one’s notice that smartphones are taking over our lives.

“Across the land, the sight of heads bowed over small screens is now ubiquitous. But our research shows just how attached to our mobile phones we really are – and perhaps without even realising it.”