I use Instagram but I don’t bother checking like counts or the list of who liked a post. You have to go out of your way to look for this information anyway.

I suppose disabling the feature could help those who can’t resist the impulse to check and who get upset if they don’t see the expected number of likes. It’s more of a forced self-control option.

I have known people who struggle with phone and social media addiction, but I have to say that the HN caricature of Instagram is nothing like my experience or that of anyone I know. Instagram has been great for keeping up with photos of friends’ hobbies, travels, kids, and other fun things to share. I suppose if someone felt significant jealousy or insecurity at other’s success or happiness then it could be stressful to see it presented so conveniently, but that’s more of a personal issue than an Instagram issue. If you stay in touch with people you’re going to hear about their kids, vacations, new house and new cars eventually anyway.

The real problem I’ve seen is addiction to scrolling through the discover page. I can see all of my friends’ updates on Instagram in 5-10 minutes per day at most. However, someone scrolling the discover page could waste endless hours consuming random content that has nothing to do with their social network.

I’d suspect the warping of mental health might be primarily concentrated in younger people?

You probably don’t make it to 35, get all established in life, then Instagram tanks your whole sense of self worth.

Seems more plausible you’d be growing up, trying to find your place in the world, head on Instagram and get depressed cause it seems like everyone’s lifestyles are just so much better than yours.

It's a little weird to blame the users in the same post that explains how the app is designed to distract you from the healthy usage you advocate.

I use Twitter and Instagram, and occasionally comment on Reddit. I don't bother to check the like/follow numbers on any of them.

İt doesnt disable likes, it hides them.