According to Carbohydrate-Insulin Model of obesity we gain weight when we consume food high in carbohydrates that causes insulin level to stay high thus promoting fat storage and preventing fat mobilization. This in turn causes us to eat more, for we didn’t get energy for our cells, but stored it in fat cells instead.

So, to lose weight there is a need to stop eating such foods by switching to low-carbs or ketogenic diet to lower insulin level. And, we can try intermittent fasting which can lower insulin since when you don’t eat anything insulin level goes down. Physical activity like walking, running, resistance training can be helpful too, by mobilizing free fatty acids from fat cells.

Then the question is there a similar approach applicable to social media apps addiction, such as frequently checking facebook, YouTube, X and other websites? Not only they distract us from performing any meaningful activity for prolonged period of time they also develop a kind of uneasiness and stress. The same applies to work apps like MS Teams etc., that easily distract you from whatever activity you are trying to do by messages, meetings, emails etc.

I am not sure about the work environment case, but I think it’s possible to confront this issue in a private space, by applying fasting approach to facebook, x, youtube etc. Even though I find x useful, for it contains useful information about, papers, books, interesting talks, most of the time it is very effective in wasting your time. The issue is that that time wasted while browsing, watching social media content can be invested in reading papers, books, and thinking.

Indeed, it feels like the main purpose of engaging in social media and social media itself is to prevent us from thinking about anything, for there is no time to stop and think since there is a need to scroll, click and consume the content. No energy is left to think why we are consuming the content and is it distracting, useless or even harmful in any way, like ultra processed food is.

So, one of the solutions is to abstain from social media for significant periods of time and using that free time to read paper books, printed scientific papers, to write your thoughts in a journal, and generally think about anything. I am not sure that 16/8 is applicable here especially, when your work includes working on a computer, but after the work such time off the digital realm seems crucial to be able to make any progress in a real physical world.