SOCIAL MEDIA | ADDICTION | HEALTH 

People who mostly use smartphones for social networking on WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram and other social media platforms are twice more likely to become addicted than those who use theirs for other functions such as calling, messaging, gaming and entertainment, mental health experts have noted.

“Spending more than eight hours on the smartphone in a day and using smartphones 30 minutes prior to sleep doubles one’s chances of getting addicted,” notes Grace Nakitto, a nurse and researcher. 

People check their phones 150 times a day, according to Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers’s annual Internet Trends report.

The report also found that people check their phones an average of 23 times a day for messaging, 22 times for voice calls and 18 times to check time.

Prof. Eugene Kinyanda, a psychiatrist who works with Medical Research Council and Makerere University agrees.

Prof. Kinyanda says the culprits for smartphone overuse are university students and a few young working people. 

Additionally, phone communication is hyped during dating. As such, smartphone users that are dating or in relationships were twice more likely to become addicted compared to their single counterparts.

Most regrettable, phone addiction is also happening at a time when people are supposed to be developing social skills. 

Consequently, affecting the acquisition of their social skills in terms of getting along with others. 

Understanding addiction

Prof.  Kinyanda, a psychiatrist who works with Medical Research Council and Makerere University, describes addiction as a problem that interferes with one’s ability to function both in terms of employment, academics for students or socializing with others.

Kinyanda says the mere mention of the word addiction, means someone has crossed from the normal use to abnormal use of something.

“Addiction automatically means it has become a disorder which is impairing someone’s ability to function,” he notes. 

Symptoms of smartphone addiction 

He lists symptoms of smartphone addiction as;

• scrolling through one’s social media texts as soon as waking up. 
• Missing planned programmes/work due to smartphone use. 
• Finding it hard to concentrate in class or at work due to smartphone use, experiencing lightheadedness or blurred vision due to excessive phone use, experiencing pain in the wrist, neck or back due to excessive phone use. 
• Others include: spending more time texting, tweeting, or emailing as opposed to talking to real-time people. 
• Having a feeling that your social media friends and interactions are more intimate than the relationships you have with real-life friends. 
• Finding yourself mindlessly passing time regularly by staring at your smartphone even though there might be better or more productive things to do, spending more time on social media or playing games than you do interact with real people. 
• Feeling that you cannot stop yourself from repeatedly checking texts, emails, or apps. 
• Always having a false sensation of having received a text message or call that leads to constantly checking your smartphone or the anxiety of receiving and responding immediately to text messages.