Can Smartphone Apps Help Reduce Drinking?

Ranging from streak-tracking and “what gets measured gets done”, through daily limits (if not abstaining completely), to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and more, the number of apps promising to help us reduce/quit drinking (or reduce/quit use of some other addictive substance) is growing.

But, do they work?

They can, but…

It depends on what you’re looking for:

• Simple stuff like streak-tracking, you can’t really go wrong, and an app is just a more private version of marks on a wall calendar.
• Tracking daily amounts, becomes rather like a nutrition-tracker. It’s useful if you use it, and if you’re honest with it.
• More direct-engagement therapeutic options, with CBT-style approaches being the most common, can be quite mixed bag.

We previously addressed this latter item in the broader sense, i.e. not just related to addictions, here:

Can An AI Program Deliver Useful Psychotherapy?

The article’s well-worth reading and looks and some specific science, but a general summary could be “yes it can, but it probably won’t”.

One of the reasons for this is that generative AI (like ChatGPT et al.) is programmed to be very agreeable, and this can cause huge problems in therapy. For example (as discussed in the above article), it might errantly support someone’s suicide plans, because to the the AI, it’s just being supportive and encouraging. In contrast, if one tries to ask GenAI to not be so agreeable, often it will overcompensate, as with a recent wearable that got a lot of negative reviews from how it was marketed as a little friend, and instead it is being obnoxiously confrontational. Its rationale: “it’s the job of a friend to say the hard truths that others won’t”.

When it comes to addiction treatment, this can lead to such things as:

• “Yes, you’re right, you’ve been doing very well, and you do deserve a treat, one drink is probably fine”
• “You’ve failed, again. Maybe the only thing you’re good at quitting is sobriety?”

Neither of which approaches are helpful. A human therapist must walk a fine without messing up, and AI isn’t there yet.

Researchers (Dr. Alex Russel et al.) looked at the plethora of apps on the market for this, and found that most apps don’t use validated behaviour-change strategies and instead rather rely on bold, scientific-sounding claims without substance. This is not too surprising in context, since app stores often promote ad-driven products instead of evidence-based ones, making the better tools harder to find.

Some things that Dr. Russell and her team advise we look for:

• Research citations: peer-reviewed studies or transparent scientific references.
• Expert involvement: development in collaboration with a licensed clinician, university, or professional organisation.
• Independent evaluation: published assessments showing real-world effectiveness.
• Data protection standards: clear explanations of storage, privacy, and compliance with regulations such as HIPAA.
• No exaggerated promises: avoids phrases like “guaranteed results” or vague “clinically proven” claims without saying what, exactly, has been proven.

The paper also talks about some of the problems with AI that we discussed above, along with more, including for example how an AI’s casual tone can downplay serious risks, that simply incorrect health information can be given, because GenAI is glorified autocorrect in the sense that it works on what people have written out in the world most often, and repeats that, whether it’s true or not, and that it will find itself wildly unprepared to deal with a real human crisis situation.

You can find the paper itself, here: The Need for Oversight Over Apps for Substance Use Reduction

Want a better way?

Check out:

• How To Reduce Or Quit Alcohol
• Addiction Myths That Are Hard To Quit
• What Happens To Your Body When You Stop Drinking Alcohol ← in case you think “it’s too late for me now”, this is a very inspiring timeline

Finally, if you’d like a much deeper dive, then we’ve reviewed a number of books on beating addictions, but here’s an excellent one that’s quite different from most:

Quit Drinking – by Rebecca Dolton ← you’ll see what the difference is

Take care!