Here’s What Happens to Your Brain on TikTok, According to a Neuroscientist

Early call for 2024 word of the year: TikTok brain. It’s the phenomenon that’s essentially the turbo-charged version of what previous generations shrugged off as “having a short attention span.” Curious about the actual impact of “TikTok brain” on concentration, focus and sleep quality, we asked a neuroscientist to tell us exactly what’s going on in the brain when we scroll TikTok. Because, how bad can watching an hour of trend breakdowns, fad challenges, product reviews and GRWM videos be, really?

Dr. Patrick Porter is a neuroscience expert and founder of BrainTap. Dr. Porter has been studying the brain for over 30 years, and integrates the fields of psychology, mental wellness and brainwave technology as it pertains to strengthening cognitive function and coping with stress. 

Know someone who seems a little jumpy, addled and has a hummingbird’s sense of concentration? They might have TikTok brain. According to Dr. Patrick Porter, developer of brain fitness app BrainTap, TikTok brain is a term used to describe the cognitive and neurological changes observed in individuals who have used the platform a lot. “It is characterized by a notably reduced attention span, often compared by neuroscientists to the brief, approximately five-second attention span of a goldfish. This phenomenon manifests as an increased need for instant gratification and a diminished patience for tasks that are longer and more complex,” Dr. Porter says.

Let’s just say that it’s a lot of info for your brain to take in— and fast. Ears are picking up auditory stimuli that are sent to the brain’s auditory cortex, and eyes are absorbing photic energy from the screen and sending a rapid sequence of stimuli to the visual cortex. Your brain is pumping out dopamine in an area called the nucleus accumbens in response to the entertaining elements of each new TikTok. Your brain likes the dopamine rush—that’s the popular term for a sudden intense release of the feel-good hormone into the bloodstream—so much that now you’re wired to take in more input (TikToks) to get the same effect.

And it’s not limited to dopamine; TikTok inspires your brain to release the following chemicals:

• Epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline): basically any snake TikTok (aka content that’s exciting or anxiety-provoking) might prepare the body for a quick response, heightening alertness and energy levels, and cause your brain to emit these neurotransmitters, which can constrict blood vessels and increase heart rate

• Serotonin: a pleasant video—say greenery on #gardentok—can cause release of this hormone that’s known for its mood-stabilizing effects

• Oxytocin: if you’ve ever seen a TikTok of a lion being reunited with the guy who rescued him as a cub, there’s a good chance you released this hormone, which is associated with feelings of bonding and trust

“The biomechanical response of TikTok brain, especially the disruption of sleep patterns due to photic energy absorption, might contribute to the growing concern over poor sleep quality,” says Dr. Porter. Overall, he says that exposure to TikTok can indeed strengthen neural pathways related to rapid information processing and multitasking, but any enhancement is “a double-edged sword.” The fast processing may be sharpened, but the capacity for deep focus and sustained attention declines—the neural circuits responsible for more deliberate, slower cognitive tasks actually weaken.

“Teen brains, which are still in the developmental stage, are more vulnerable to the effects of TikTok,” Dr. Porter says. The effects might show up as shorter attention spans and a tendency toward reward-seeking. Adult brains, by contrast, are fully formed and so have already entrenched neural pathways, so they may be less impressionable. Additionally, a 2021 study of high school students showed TikTok Use Disorder as being linked to memory loss, depression, stress and anxiety.

Not only that, but Dr. Porter perceives TikTok as changing the very nature of consciousness. “Unlike previous generations, who tended to store specific information in memory, the current generation of young adults is increasingly treating their brain more like a search engine than a traditional fact retrieval system,” he says. “This shift is attributed to the knowledge that information is readily available and stored on the web. As a result, their brains are becoming more adept at remembering how to access information (i.e. where or how to find it) rather than the specific details of the information itself.”

Read a book between scrolling. Take a walk without your phone in hand. Talk to another human being face-to-face. TLDR: there’s a whole other world beyond the edges of your black mirror, and there are dopamine-rich entertainments and oxytocin-laced adventures awaiting for you there, too.