He urged people to cut back on screen time to give your brain some “down time”.
A neurologist has issued a stark warning about smartphone usage, suggesting it may be harming our brains. He has called on the public to reduce their screen time in order to allow the brain crucial “downtime”.
Mobile phones have become an integral part of daily existence. A recent survey conducted by the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising, which questioned 6,500 Brits, revealed that those aged 15 and above spend an average of three hours and 21 minutes daily on their devices.
While they offer convenience in areas such as communication, diary management and banking, they may also be creating significant problems. With this concern in mind, Dr Baibing Cheng turned to social media platform TikTok to share his insights.
He cautioned that excessive scrolling behaviour could trigger five particular issues.
Dopamine overload
Dr Baibing, who is better known as Dr Bing, explained: “Here’s what scrolling on the phone all day can do to your brain. Number one is dopamine overload.
“Every swipe you do on Instagram or TikTok can give you a tiny dopamine hit, which is the brain’s reward chemical. And over time your brain can start to crave short bursts of novelty instead of long focused effort and if you do this too often it’s like training your brain for instant gratification.”
Shortened attention span
This pattern can render activities such as reading a book or sitting through a lecture suddenly “impossible”.
“Number two is shortened attention span,” he added. “Constant novelty from scrolling keeps your prefrontal cortex, which is the part of the brain that controls focus, jumping from one thing to another and eventually real life starts to feel too slow. And that’s why reading a book or sitting through a lecture suddenly feels impossible.”
Reduced creativity
He said: “This is because scrolling keeps your attention externally stimulated, which then shuts down your default mode network, the system that activates when you reflect or think deeply. And without mental rest you don’t have great creativity.”
Emotional desensitisation
It may not be immediately apparent, but using your phone could affect your capacity to empathise with others. Dr Bing stated: “Too much fast-paced emotional content such as seeing something shocking and then something funny and then something sad or happy all at once can blunt your insular and limbic responses, which then makes you less sensitive to real emotions or even empathy fatigue.”
Increased anxiety
He further added: “Your brain isn’t built for non-stop novelty and that’s why the constant switching can drain your working memory and flood your stress circuits and why you feel wired yet mentally exhausted after hours of scrolling. Maybe this video is a sign for you to stop scrolling and give your brain some downtime.”