Meghan Markle compares social media to drugs; says she won't make a return to it

Meghan Markle had been a fairly active social media user until March this year. She used Facebook and Twitter while working in the entertainment industry and even had 1.9 million followers on Instagram when she closed the accounts in 2018 before marrying into the British royal family. She also had a lifestyle blog "The Tigg" during her acting days.

After Meghan Markle became a senior member of the British royal family, she was awarded the title of the Duchess of Sussex, and had an official Instagram account that she shared with her husband Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex. The Instagram handle 'Sussex Royal' had over 10 million followers when it was shut in March this year after the couple quit as working royals and relocated to the US.

However, the "Suits" alum has now "made a personal choice to not have any account" on social media, as not knowing what's out there has been helpful for her in many ways.

Speaking at Fortune's Most Powerful Women Next Gen Virtual Summit on Tuesday, that was reserved for invited guests willing to pay a $1,750 fee, Meghan drew a comparison between social media and drugs, noting that both have similar capabilities of causing addiction, reports Daily Mail.

"There are very few things in this world where you call the person who's engaging with it 'a user.' People who are addicted to drugs are called users and people who are on social media are called users," Meghan explained.

The 39-year-old went on to discuss the dangers of social media, saying: "There is something algorithmically that is in there that is creating this obsession that I think is very unhealthy for a lot of people. I have a lot of concerns for people that have become obsessed with it and it is so much a part of our daily culture for so many people that it is an addiction."

The former American actress also clarified that she is not suffering from this addiction as she has "not been on social media for a very long time," noting that it wasn't her and Harry but a team that looked over their Sussex Royal account during their time in the "institution."

"We had (an Instagram account) through the institution and our office that was in the UK. But that wasn't managed by us that was a whole team," she said, adding that she will not be returning to social media platforms in the future.