Town tries to call time on gen Zers' use of their smartphones

Despite working full-time for a company in Tokyo, Shoki Moriyama manages to eke out eight hours a day to devote to his smartphone. "I need my phone to navigate my way through the information wars," said Moriyama, who at 25 is part of a generation that can't imagine life without scrolling through news and social media, messaging apps and off-the-wall video clips.

- By Justin McCurry TOKYO

While excessive smartphone use is a worldwide phenomenon, authorities in Japan are taking action, amid growing concern over its physical and psychological toll, particularly on children and young people.

This month, the town of Toyoake in central Japan introduced a measure limiting smartphone use among its 69,000 residents to two hours a day, in what officials say was an attempt to tackle evidence of online addiction and sleep deprivation. The ordinance - passed by the town assembly last month - does not carry penalties for those who ignore it.

Moriyama was among several people, all in their 20s, who accepted the Guardian's challenge to keep their smartphone use to a maximum of two hours and share their experiences.

There were resounding successes and abject failures.

Moriyama, who habitually checks Line - a popular instant-messaging, news and entertainment "super app" - as well as TikTok, Instagram and X, conceded that dramatically curtailing his usage had been a struggle.