It’s no secret that spending the night scrolling through social media will likely leave you groggy and sleep-deprived the next day. According to the American Psychological Association, it could even have lasting impacts on younger users’ mental health. But could consuming large volumes of digital content literally rot your brain?
Brain Rot Definition
Brain rot is an informal term used to describe the mental and emotional deterioration that happens when a person excessively consumes trivial content. In the digital age, this term is associated with online content, focusing especially on social media.
Brain rot refers to a person’s mental state regressing due to overconsuming trivial, mind-numbing content — particularly online content. It’s often associated with Generation Alpha, whose members playfully use the phrase to describe content like “only in Ohio” memes and the “Skibidi Toilet” YouTube series.
Originally a cultural term popularized by tech-savvy teenagers, brain rot has entered the mainstream lexicon, with researchers and policymakers increasingly treating it as the next big health crisis.
What Is Brain Rot?
Brain rot describes the mental and emotional decline that occurs when someone overconsumes content considered mindless and unintellectual. For example, a teenage student scrolling through memes in their social media feed may experience less mental engagement than if they were designing a digital artwork or researching a topic via the internet.
“Obviously, there are educational things that they have to do, and there are creative things that one can do with a screen,” Dr. Karyne Messina, an author, podcast host and psychologist with a focus on mental healthcare, told Built In. “Creative activities that are interactive are one thing, but passive consumption — that’s another thing.”
The phrase “brain rot” first appeared in the 1854 book Walden by Henry David Thoreau, who was criticizing what he saw as a decline in intellectual standards. However, it wasn’t until the 2020s that the concept was introduced to wider audiences. According to the Oxford University Press, usage of the term skyrocketed by 230 percent between 2023 and 2024. This is mainly thanks to Gen Z and Gen Alpha online users, who helped catapult brain rot to becoming the Oxford Word of the Year in 2024.
Today, brain rot encompasses all digital content, but the phrase usually implicates social media. Although there’s no consensus for the reason behind this connection, features like infinite scrolling and personalized user feeds may fuel claims that platforms like Instagram and TikTok are addictive.
“People have always gotten lost in books for days at a time or spent whole weekends playing video games,” Emilie Owens, a doctoral research fellow at the University of Oslo who has previously studied brain rot, told Built In. “The difference is with TikTok, there’s no end to it. Without doing anything, without making any active choices, you can just pull forever.”
What Causes Brain Rot?
Brain rot can stem from many unhealthy behaviors. Below are some of the most common lifestyle choices linked to brain rot.
Staring at Screens for Extended Periods
Excessive screen time can have negative consequences for the brain. In the case of children, too much screen time can affect everything from users’ cognitive abilities to their socio-emotional development. Adults can experience similar effects when staring at screens too often, including reduced learning and a higher chance of early neurodegeneration.
Spending Too Much Time on Social Media
While more research needs to be done in this area, there’s a growing fear that overconsuming social media can harm younger users’ brains. The U.S. Surgeon General’s social media advisory suggests that too much social media use can affect parts of the brain responsible for abilities like emotional learning and impulse control in users ages 10 to 19.
Multitasking on Different Devices
Switching between typing out an email, responding to a friend via text and running a show in the background makes it harder to concentrate on a single task. Research has shown that this habit can have a long-term effect on the brain as well, with digital multitasking being linked to poorer memory and a smaller attention span.
Failing to Stimulate the Brain
Scrolling through social media, videos, memes and other digital content can have a numbing effect on the brain. The brain functions like a muscle — if it is not regularly challenged with complex tasks, it can atrophy over time. In fact, a 2021 study found that using social media before working out can result in poorer performance due to a greater sense of mental fatigue.
What Does Brain Rot Look Like?
Brain rot can manifest in various ways. These are just a few examples of what it looks like in everyday life.
Scrolling for the Sake of Scrolling
Scrolling with no purpose in mind is a form of brain rot, whether to escape responsibilities or kill time. It’s simply scrolling for the sake of scrolling. Because of its seemingly purposeless nature, scrolling for the sake of scrolling is also referred to as “zombie scrolling.”
Obsessing Over Negative News
Doomscrolling refers to the act of impulsively scrolling through a social media feed looking for bad news, and it’s a hard habit to break. According to a Stanford University study, news sources publish more negative than positive content because it’s more likely to draw in readers.
Impulsively Checking Social Media
Unable to stop oneself from constantly checking social media often signals that a social media addiction has formed. It can get to the point where a person is on social media all the time, at the expense of other activities and in-person relationships.
Becoming Absorbed in Video Games
Video game addiction is when someone plays video games for long periods of time, to the point where it starts interfering with other parts of their life. A University of Michigan study found that having friends on a gaming platform can also contribute to addiction.
Brain Rot Symptoms
Left unchecked, behaviors tied to brain rot can start to take a toll on one’s mind and quality of life. The following effects can serve as warning signs that frequent digital use needs to be addressed.
Weakened Memory
Research indicates that spending too much time scrolling through social media feeds can weaken a person’s memory over time. On top of that, the socio-emotional consequences of being on social media all the time might make it even worse.
Involving multiple devices can amplify these effects on memory and potentially alter the brain’s hippocampus, which is responsible for learning and long-term memory.
“One thing that often goes with multitasking is an increase in cortisol, an increase in chronic stress,” Dr. Eric Schumacher, professor of psychology at the Georgia Institute of Technology, told Built In. “And we know there are health consequences to memory, especially from chronic stress. So increased glucocorticoids or cortisol can damage the hippocampus — the neurons that are specifically involved in encoding new information can die in the presence of chronic stress.”
Lower Mental Stamina and Motivation
Unhealthy behaviors related to brain rot can leave online users struggling during the day. Among teenagers, frequent internet use is associated with poorer-quality sleep and daytime fatigue. Excess screen time is also an issue in the workplace. Consider the phenomenon of Zoom fatigue, which refers to a deteriorated mental and physical state due to too many Zoom meetings.
Heightened Anxiety and Depression
The mental health impacts of behaviors linked to brain rot can remain for years. According to a 2023 study published by Yale and Columbia researchers, high amounts of screen time among 9- and 10-year-olds can lead to lingering mental health issues two years down the road. These include social anxiety, depression, attention issues and aggressive behavior.
Increased Isolation
Online activity can become an issue when it gets in the way of in-person relationships. Social media users may also feel left out when they see friends posting photos and stories of activities they didn’t attend. Even in cases where users are interacting with other users, these conversations may not offer the same kind of connection as in-person conversations.
Lower Self-Esteem
Spaces like social media platforms and online forums may expose online users to issues like cyberbullying and frequently comparing one’s worth to others. In general, extensive screen time takes away from participating in activities and completing goals as well. This can have far-reaching implications for children and adolescents, who cultivate confidence and feelings of self-worth through personal achievements.
“If you have a day after school that’s filled with activities and not just screen time, it’s actually more rewarding. It feels like something’s been accomplished,” Dr. Messina said. “Personal accomplishment, which feeds into self-esteem, is really important, and however we can help young people build self-esteem is really crucially important.”
Reduced Productivity
Staring at screens for long periods of time can be a major distraction, and not just for children and adolescents. In stressful or unstructured workplaces, employees may turn to cyberloafing, replacing moments spent completing tasks with moments spent scrolling through digital content.
Who Is Most Susceptible to Brain Rot?
All age groups are susceptible to brain rot-related behaviors, but its ties to social media place the spotlight primarily on younger demographics. According to the Pew Research Center, U.S. adults aged 18 to 29 are the most frequent users on platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, and nearly half of U.S. teenagers are on social media, too. This is especially noteworthy considering the period between ages 10 to 19 is so crucial for brain development, making young users more vulnerable to extreme mental health consequences.
Indeed, fears that brain rot behaviors could undermine youth mental health may have some standing. Among the parts of the brain affected by frequent social media use, the U.S. Surgeon General’s advisory highlights the prefrontal cortex, which is related to complex functions like regulating emotions and behaviors. Since it doesn’t fully develop until one’s early- to mid-20s, adolescents may lack the self-control needed to resist the pull of personalized social media and limit how much time they spend on it.
“Our ability to identify a longer-term goal and delay gratification so that we can achieve that goal requires the prefrontal cortex. So adolescents and children in general are going to be less able to do that,” Dr. Schumacher said. “And it’s possible that these algorithms in social media are overwhelming that developing system.”
Research supports this possibility. One study out of the University of North Carolina found that adolescents who regularly checked platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat were more sensitive to social feedback, which could lessen their capacity for cognitive control in the long term. Another study of U.S. adolescents linked heavy social media use to poorer mental health, with high-use participants reporting higher rates of negative body image and suicidal intentions.
Still, there is no clear causal relationship between social media and mental health problems. While some governments are banning social media for children and teens, experts caution that the lack of strong scientific evidence makes such measures risky and could lead to unintended consequences.
“Misinterpreting something like brain rot as a single A to B relationship of ‘the technology is causing harm’ could then cause a third harm,” Owens said, “where subsections of the population are left out of what is now a very normal way of being in the social world, which is to be on one’s phone.”
How to Prevent Brain Rot
Fortunately, you can avoid and even reverse the effects of brain rot with just a few proactive measures.
Set Limits on Screen Time
Establish firm boundaries around screen time. Dedicating certain parts of the day to a set length of online activity can make it easier to track digital habits. Devices like iPhones and Androids often come with screen time features for managing user habits.
Curate Social Media Feeds
Seek out social media content creators who produce positive and thought-provoking content, and block or mute creators who only share negative content. This can help you feel energized and less likely to slip into bouts of doomscrolling.
Take Breaks From Devices
Remember to take regular breaks from looking at screens. Turn off notifications, switch your phone to airplane mode and consider placing it in a drawer. Partake in a digital detox if needed, taking a more extended break from apps and devices.
Cultivate Offline Hobbies
Invest more time in offline activities like hiking, recreational sports, baking and craft-making. Developing non-digital hobbies will make it easier to spend more time away from screens and scrolling.
Prioritize In-Person Relationships
Be intentional about spending in-person time with family and friends. Consider ideas like board game nights, group walks and picnics. If you’re looking to meet new friends, check out local meet-up groups centered around a shared interest or hobby.
You can even integrate technology into everyday life to maintain in-person connections and prevent using devices in ways that are socially isolating. For example, parents can watch a show or movie with their children and discuss the content with them.
“That’s really important, to have conversations about what kids are doing or what they’re watching,” Dr. Messina said. “Say it’s some show or YouTube video. They might not understand what’s happening. If you sit there and watch it with them, you can have a discussion, see what they understand.”
Perform Intellectually Challenging Activities
Keep your brain active by integrating intellectual activities into your daily routine. Reading a book, solving a crossword puzzle, writing a journal entry and learning a new skill are a few ways to keep your brain engaged.
Is Brain Rot Really All That Bad?
The phrase “brain rot” implies that mindless content can only be damaging to one’s physical and mental health. But this isn’t always the case.
In today’s world, young people have to deal with climate change concerns, political unrest and school shootings — issues often fed to them all at once over the internet, which can be overwhelming. Not to mention the unrealistic self-improvement standards that are hocked all over social media. In this environment, trivial, mindless content can offer a much-needed escape, providing a brief respite from the stressors of both the physical and digital worlds.
After all, mindless content isn’t necessarily meaningless content. Rather than be depicted as victims of addictive algorithms, adolescents could be seen as active participants in shaping online spaces designed specifically for them and their peers. YouTube references, goofy memes and other types of content labeled as “brain rot” may actually contribute to a digital culture that younger generations get to call their own.
“The dumb jokes your parents don’t get are huge, they’re hugely important to your development as a community at that age — between the age of maybe 13 to probably into your early 20s,” Owens said. “That’s when you start to establish who you are and not who your parents are. And it’s silly, but dumb slang, idiot jokes, repetition and memes — those are hugely important to that process of generational identity into adulthood.”
Frequently Asked Questions
Is brain rot a cognitive disease?
Brain rot is not an official cognitive disease recognized by the medical community, so an individual cannot be diagnosed with brain rot. It is more related to one’s lifestyle and daily habits than their actual cognitive state. Unlike conditions like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, the effects of brain rot can be reversed if an individual actively decides to change their behavior. Still, it is associated with symptoms like increased anxiety, declining mental health and reduced memory.
What are brain rot symptoms?
Common signs of brain rot include:
- Poor memory
- Lower mental stamina
- Difficulty concentrating
- Feelings of anxiety and depression
- Increased isolation
- Lower self-esteem
- Reduced productivity
How do I get rid of brain rot?
Brain rot can be addressed with some simple lifestyle changes. These include:
- Setting limits on screen time
- Curating social media feeds to be more positive and mentally stimulating
- Frequently taking breaks from social media and screens in general
- Prioritizing offline hobbies (reading, crafts, cooking, hiking, etc.)
- Performing intellectually challenging activities (puzzles, journaling, reading, etc.)
- Prioritizing in-person relationships
