Cutting back brought a 50 per cent improvement in sleep quality
Cutting down on social media use by as little as 15 minutes a day can significantly improve the mental and physical health of young people, a study has found.
The research looked at the effects on physical health and psychological functioning of getting people to reduce their social media usage by the small amount over a three-month period.
Researchers from Swansea University compared the outcomes to groups of people who were not asked to reduce their usage or were explicitly asked to do something other than social media during those 15 minutes.
In the study, 50 participants (33 female and 17 male), aged 20 to 25, answered monthly questions about their health and psychological function and also provided weekly reports on their social media usage.
The results showed that the group asked to reduce their social media use had an average 15 per cent improvement in immune function, including fewer colds, flu, warts and verrucae. They also saw a 50 per cent improvement in sleep quality and 30 per cent fewer depressive symptoms.
These improvements were significantly greater than that experienced by the other two groups, neither of which showed any changes in those measures.
Researchers say the improvements were significantly greater than those experienced by the other two groups.
Those instructed to reduce their usage ended up doing so by about 40 minutes a day, rather than the 15 minutes requested, whereas there was a daily 10-minute increase for the group asked not to do anything. The group specifically asked to do something other than social media increased their usage by around 25 minutes a day.
Professor Phil Reed, from Swansea University’s School of Psychology, said: “These data demonstrate that, when people reduce their social media use, their lives can improve in many ways – including benefits for their physical health and psychological well-being.
“That the group asked to reduce their usage and do something different did not show these benefits suggests that campaigns to make people healthier could avoid telling people how to use their time. They can resent it. Instead, give them the facts, and let them deal with how they make the reduction, rather than telling them to do something more useful – it may not be effective.”
The research was published in the Journal of Technology in Behavioral Science.
Recent previous research by the American Psychological Association found cutting down on social media use makes teens and young people feel significantly better about their body image. It was found even a brief break can make a difference: Halving the amount of time spent on sites such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok for just a few weeks can have a positive effect on their attitude to their appearance and weight.
