Several scientists who have studied the effects of intense consumption of short videos on TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts have found an impact in brain areas linked to concentration, self-control, memory and emotional balance, which derive from rapid and continuous stimulation that push the brain to seek immediate rewards rather than reflection. The short videos we watch during the scrolling they influence the brain because they rapidly activate the reward system, generating dopamine spikes that push us to want to watch more and more, creating a real addiction.
They also habituate attention to very short durations, making it more difficult to concentrate on long tasks, they can interfere with memory, causing people to forget planned actions or lose track of activities, and EEG studies also indicate a reduction in activity in brain areas involved in control and decision-making. The results are decreased attention, cognitive overload, memory difficulties, alterations in brain responses, risk of behavioral addiction, mental stress, chronic boredom.
How much time do we spend scrolling in Italy?
In the Digital Wellbeing Report conducted by UnoBravo in 2025 on over 1,500 Italian adults, it appears that the most active on social media are Italians between 18 and 34 years old: over half (57%) stay up late scrolling through their feeds, despite their sleep, and 44% check them as soon as they wake up. “These habits,” explains UnoBravo, “can disrupt sleep cycles and increase anxiety by keeping the brain in a state of constant stimulation.” Across all age groups, they spend over 12 hours a week on the platforms: while older adults (over 65) spend an average of 7 hours, young adults between 18 and 24 years old reach 21 hours a week (which corresponds to almost a fifth of the time spent awake!).
The results of the report show a correlation between online behavior and a worsening in areas such as mental health, self-esteem and relationships, particularly in the groups that use it the most (25-34), who 40% report that social media negatively influences their mental health, and 30% say that it increases stress or anxiety. Basically, the more we use the phone, the greater the damage. Although we are increasingly aware of the negative effects, including our growing ability to disconnect, we continue to consider social media indispensable: 47% of 18-34 year olds consider it essential for staying up to date on news and trends.
Why short videos harm us
Those who consume more videos, in an addictive mechanism, according to a study published in Neuroimage, present functional alterations of specific brain networks. These include areas involved in emotion regulation and the reward system such as the orbitofrontal cortex and bilateral cerebellum, and greater activity, due to hyperstimulation, in the area of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, which regulates complex cognitive functions, the posterior cingulate cortex, associated with the ability to monitor one’s emotions, and the temporal lobe, which, if overstimulated, can lead to greater sensitivity to social stimuli, strong reactivity to emotional content and greater impact of social comparison (for example envy).
The problem with short videos is that they are designed to stimulate the brain’s reward system, resulting in a rush of dopamine, the pleasure and motivation molecule. This constant consumption accustoms the brain to the search for immediate stimuli and, on the other hand, reduces the ability to carry out those activities that require prolonged attention. Furthermore, according to recent research, prolonged viewing of short videos could also compromise “prospective memory”, that is, our ability to remember to complete a planned action: for this reason it becomes more difficult for us, even in the short term, to remember to complete tasks that we have set ourselves, such as when we get up from the sofa to go to the kitchen and at a certain point we don’t even remember why.
In children and young people the impact is also found on school performance. Recently a study published in the journal Psychological Bulletin (Feeds, feelings, and focus: A systematic review and meta-analysis examining the cognitive and mental health correlates of short-form video use) which analyzed 71 different studies dedicated to the consumption of short video content (TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts), confirmed a correlation with the worsening of concentration and cognitive abilities, in particular among elementary and middle school students: in general, a worsening of academic performance and an increase in depression, loneliness, stress and anxiety was recorded. It should be specified that a review study does not demonstrate direct causality but associations observed in the data.
How to reduce the effects
According to several studies, balanced use and regular breaks should help the brain to do a sort of “reset” and return to thinking more clearly. Setting notifications on individual applications and on smartphones in general to monitor and limit daily time can be very useful in avoiding compulsive scrolling. Defining specific time slots in which not to use the phone is also a useful strategy, particularly during meals and before sleeping (at least an hour before!), so as not to ruin your sleep.
Of course, it is often notifications that lead us to pick up the phone even when we don’t want to: silent mode, or a limitation of notifications (for example, leaving only calls active) can protect us from continuous stimuli. All these measures can help us break those automatic loops that lead us to continuously scroll in search of dopamine, and regain greater control over compulsions and a better level of concentration and memory.
