Interesting Facts

According to researchers from Vrije University in Amsterdam,  Facebook is as addictive as (if not more addictive than) cigarettes and chocolate. (Seemingly just seeing the blue and white Facebook logo is enough to give an addict a buzz, making it impossible for them to resist logging on.  I'm sure Mr Zuckerberg is glad to hear that, but "impossible".  Really? Check yourself, and if you find it irresistible, switch your device off and go for a walk.)

According to researchers at the University of Derby, smartphones are psychologically addictive, and should come with a health warning. (47% of respondents spoke positively of improved social relations, but almost a quarter admitted their smartphones create communication issues in “real life”, and the constant use of smartphones to check your online status on social networks etc, is thought to encourage narcissistic tendencies: 35% of the people studied admitted to using their devices in areas or situations when they were banned (eg while driving).  Their justification was that they knew better than the authorities who created the rules. I guess that's also why some people still drink and drive.  Maybe the two aren't that dissimilar.) Source Post by The Learn English Network .

Psychiatrists estimate that the number of people who have become digitally dependent has risen 30 per cent over the past three years. (Hospitals in the UK now offer technology-addiction services. Psychiatrist Dr Nerina Ramlakhan, author of Tired But Wired, said "People are getting locked into a cycle of technology at work, and then surf the net or use Facebook to unwind. They become exhausted, but cannot switch their brains off." If you're worried about this, log off the net, switch your computer off, go home and go out for a walk with the family - oh and leave your smartphones at home.)

According to scientists at the University of Cambridge, abnormalities in the brain may make some people more likely to become drug addicts. (Experts have always been unsure whether drugs changed the wiring of the brain or if drug addicts' brains were wired differently in the first place and this study has shown the same differences in the brains of addicts and their non-addicted brothers and sisters. So you really can blame it on  your parents.) Source

According to a report by Ofcom, half of all UK teenagers own smartphones. (Yes, the Communications Market 2011 report from Ofcom shows that that smartphone ownership is still on the rise and that teenagers are obsessed with their phones. The report findings show that teenagers are much more likely to own a smartphone than adults and are more obsessed with them. 48 per cent of teenagers own a smartphone compared to just 27 per cent of adults. 60% of teenagers who owned a smartphone described themselves as “highly addicted” to their handsets. Only 37 per cent of adults felt that way. I'm really glad I'm not a teenager any more.)

EBay can become an addiction - the Priory clinic is now admitting people with an online auction habit. (My name is Lynne and I shop!)