Lights and sounds coming from electronic gambling machines – also known as EGMs, pokies or slots – contribute to their addictive potential according to new research published this week. Here's how flashing lights and catchy tunes make gamblers take more risks

Unless you're a masochist and/or sociopath, you probably don't indulge in bad habits by choice. Instead, it's usually something you "fell into" and can't seem to navigate your way out of. This infographic explains the psychology behind bad habits along with some tried-and-trusted tips to help you break them.

Technology has undoubtedly become essential for productivity and communication in our professional and personal lives. But do you pull out your phone the instance you’re bored? You’re a zombie checker.

How much daily phone use is too much? It's a difficult question to answer, made even more difficult by the fact that there are so many different uses for that magic black rectangle in our pockets, and the fact that it's often tough to be aware of the passage of time when you're eyeballs deep in conspiracy theory rabbit holes, strangers' braggy holiday photos, ads for cheap mattresses and other digital jetsam.

How concerned should people be about the psychological effects of screen time? Balancing technology use with other aspects of daily life seems reasonable, but there is a lot of conflicting advice about where that balance should be.

Much of the discussion – including the World Health Organization’s recent decision to declare “gaming disorder” an “addictive behavior disorder” –is framed around fighting “addiction” to technology. But to me, that resembles a moral panic, giving voice to scary claims based on weak data.

Over the past year, countless children and adults have tuned into the game Fortnite, a free-to-play battle royale game that allows players to compete with others around the world. The game is fun and features some cartoonish violence, which has led many to worry about whether such games are problematic.

Inevitable anecdotes have popped up of some children behaving badly in relation to the game such as the British girl who is said to have wet herself rather than stop playing. Do these anecdotes hint towards a coming epidemic of violent or addicted children? Simply put: no.

When you quit smoking, your body begins to function differently. In the short term, your heart rate and blood pressure adjust themselves. As the years go by, your risks for cancer and heart disease get closer to those of non-smokers. This calculator can give you specific dates for when all these things happen if you were to quit right now.

In this episode of The Upgrade we're taking a closer look at alcohol - why we drink, what it does to us, and how to quit, if we're so inclined. We're joined by author Annie Grace, author of the book This Naked Mind: Control Alcohol, Find Freedom, Discover Happiness & Change Your Life.

A recent post from Facebook acknowledged that Facebook is bad for your mental health. To remedy this, Facebook want you to use more Facebook.

Wait, what?

I have a bad habit. On Saturday nights, after a few glasses of Chablis and a night of doing nothing, I take a trip through my online wishlist looking for something to buy. It's a costly habit that's filled my home with with cheap books, expensive Gundam model kits, and a few E-Mount lenses I haven't exactly gotten around to using.

Former Design Ethicist at Google and founder of the non-profit Time Well Spent, Tristan Harris has been making the rounds lately, talking about how technology is engineered to be addictive and hijack our attention. He's pretty persuasive, comparing the lure of your phone to the that of a slot machine.

Some of us can definitely say we have a sweet tooth. Whether it’s cakes, chocolates, cookies, lollies or soft drinks, our world is filled with intensely pleasurable sweet treats. Sometimes eating these foods is just too hard to resist. But is it actually "additive" in a biological sense? Let's take a look at the science.

Most parents wish they had more time to spend with their kids. They also waste untold hours staring at their smartphones. It doesn't take a child genius to see the connection here. If you spend a chunk of every weekend checking social media apps and surfing the web, it might be time to put your children in charge of your mobile devices.

Here's a novel solution. This weekend, let your kids reset the password or parental lock on your phone - without watching them do it.

iOS/Android: If you or a loved one is struggling with substance abuse, gambling, alcohol, eating disorders or some other addiction, Addicaid may provide you with one option for recourse, or at least an outlet for you to confide in someone who understands.

From the headlines, prescription painkillers sound pretty scary. Some of the people who take them switch to heroin, and some die of overdoses. The problem is so bad that the US FDA has mandated black-box warning labels about the risk of abuse. But at the same time, these drugs are common and useful tools to manage pain.

Your lips are dry, so you apply a little something soothing from a tube or a tiny jar or one of those weird golf ball things. Aah, relief. But as soon as it wears off, you need more. The cycle repeats all throughout the colder months. Are you practicing responsible skin care, or have you become addicted?

You've probably heard the phrase "addictive personality" tossed around before. The general idea is that some people are more prone to addiction because of their personality traits. This is a bit misleading though, and SciShow explains why.

Dear Lifehacker, Like many people I've found it hard to put down an addictive game on occasion, but recently it has become more of a problem. Gaming obsessively until late at night and on weekends has negatively impacted my work and social life, to the point where I feel I need to do something about it. How can I battle my gaming addiction?

There aren't many of us who don't have some bad habit we'd like to quit: smoking, sweets, shopping, nail-biting, porn, excessive checking of social media, other distractions. The problem is that we think we don't have the willpower, faced with past evidence of failure after failure when we've tried to quit before.