Online fatigue: millions in UK take temporary break from connected devices: report

Many people in the UK are trying to regain control of their lives in an effort to reset the balance in their online and offline lives by taking a temporary break from connected devices.

The revelation comes from the UK telecoms watchdog Ofcom's 13th annual Communications Market report, which offered a yearly round up of the domestic digital and media consumption landscape.

According to Ofcom, in 2016 one in three UK internet users (or some 15 million people) felt that there was too much tech in their lives. They realised they needed a 'digital detox' to try to regain control over their devices.

A quarter of these reported spending up to a day without the internet; and a fifth took a week off; while 5 per cent somehow managed to be web-free for up to a month.

The past week alone had seen one in 10 take a self-enforced break from their screens. The figures had been extrapolated from a study of 2,025 UK adults and 500 teenagers, conducted by Ofcom.

Ofcom further found that many internet users enjoyed their self-enforced breaks, with a third (33 per cent) reporting feeling more productive. Twenty seven per cent described the break as ''liberating,'' while a quarter said they ''enjoyed life more.''

"The digital detox trend has been born out of a realization that being glued to smartphones or tablets is affecting peoples' everyday lives," the report said.

"Half of all mobile users make sure their phone is within reach when they go to bed, while a similar proportion say the last thing they do before they sleep and when they wake up is look at their device.

The research also revealed the fallout of internet addiction, with nearly half (48 per cent) of internet users saying they had neglected housework, 47 per cent said they had missed out on sleep or were tired the next day.