Facebook and Snapchat are awesome ways to keep up with friends. But according to a new study, the more time you spend on social media, the less social you might actually be.
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Why? Researchers say too many hours online is linked to increased feelings of isolation.
To reach this conclusion, scientists examined the social media patterns of 1,787 young adults in the U.S., whose ages ranged from 19 to 32.
With a questionnaire that focused on 11 platforms - Facebook, Google Plus, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Reddit, Snapchat, Twitter, Tumblr, Vine and YouTube - they determined that those who were logged on for more than two hours a day felt considerably lonelier than those who only stayed online for 30 minutes.
And those who checked their accounts 58 times a week were three times as likely to feel isolated than those who only did it about 9 times per week.
While scientists aren't sure of the reason, they speculate that too much time glued to your phone leaves little room for real-life interaction and can cause FOMO (fear of missing out).
Want to know about the research? Click here for the full report.
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