An excerpt from 10 Tips for 2010

10. Unplug and get real
In the wired society we now live in, it is getting easier and easier to communicate without human contact. You can now pull a sickie with a text message or an email, and you don't even have to turn your head to look for a lunch partner - you can just email or Facebook or IM (short for internet messaging) them. Or, if you want to have a quick chat, your avatar and their avatars can take turns to spout speech bubbles in a virtual cafe in Second Life. All you need to do is type and click.

But human contact - the touch that when taken away during infancy produces more aggressive and violent children - is imperative to our sanity and wellbeing. As psychiatrist Charles Nemeroff said in a Discovery Health interview about human contact and affection, intimacy, closeness, and friendship can prevent one from feeling the effects of stress. In fact, intimacy has been shown to prevent chronic stress.

So, if you think trading tweets and updating your status are enough to help you de-stress, try asking a colleague you get along with out for tea instead. You may find real-life conversations and laughter more potent than any capitalised "l-o-l" you've ever typed.