The doomscrolling term gained traction when constant crisis coverage during COVID-19 and major political events pushed people into long stretches of scrolling through alarming updates. At the time, many described it as feeling unable to look away, even when the content was clearly distressing.

That pattern is what separates doomscrolling from ordinary social media browsing. If you want a behavioral overview, you can check this article, which focuses specifically on the effects of the habit, describing the dopamine rabbit hole and the fear of missing out (FOMO) cognitive response.

Below, we examine what doomscrolling is and what happens physiologically and neurologically during prolonged phone use.

From Habit to Health Risk: What Is Doomscrolling? 

Researchers and psychologists later introduced the doomscrolling scale, which focuses specifically on repeated exposure to content and the emotional strain that follows. Although doomscrolling often happens on social media platforms, news and traditional media sites can also produce the same loop when the content is predominantly alarming.

By contrast, general news checking that includes neutral or positive updates, educational apps, or microlearning solutions does not show the same compulsive, stress-linked pattern described above. However, the above specific pattern is characterized by a lack of stopping cues, leading to prolonged exposure to high-arousal negative stimuli (e.g., content that triggers a strong emotional reaction, such as fear or alarm).

When exposure to that type of content continues without interruption, the body’s stress response stays active longer than it normally would:

• Once that pattern becomes habitual, the effects move beyond mood.
• Repeated exposure to such information activates the body’s stress response, which helps explain why this behavior has measurable health consequences.

1. What Happens in the Brain During Doomscrolling

When you encounter a perceived feeling in a feed (when your brain releases dopamine), the amygdala — the brain’s primary center for emotional processing — triggers an immediate alarm. This is the initiation of the fight-or-flight response. Even though the threat is digital rather than physical, the brain prepares the body for action by activating the sympathetic nervous system.

This activation prompts the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis to release cortisol. While cortisol is beneficial for acute survival, its frequent release during hours of scrolling can lead to hypervigilance. Over time, this constant chemical signaling can lead to chronic inflammation and a weakened immune response.

The brain treats the search for information as a reward-seeking behavior. You continue to scroll because the brain is wired to resolve uncertainty, yet the infinite nature of social feeds ensures that uncertainty is never fully resolved. If you are looking for structured ways to consume information and start continuous learning, educational platforms and apps like Nibble offer microlearning educational lessons that avoid these open-ended dopamine loops.

2. Mental Health Consequences Documented in Research

The frequent exposure to distressing news on social media was associated with markers of secondary traumatic stress, including emotional exhaustion, according to the 2024 study published in PubMed Central (PMC). In other words, people who repeatedly consumed quick content began to show symptoms similar to those seen in indirect trauma exposure.

Here it shows up in everyday scrolling. Emotional exhaustion is one of the markers that the study measured. People reported feeling drained even when they were physically safe. The effect was stronger in people who already had high stress levels.

Continued exposure seemed to add weight over time, so the stress did not disappear when the phone went back in the pocket. It also means your nervous system keeps reacting to what you check.

3. Physical Health Effects of Chronic News Exposure

The physiological impact of doomscrolling extends to the cardiovascular system. The chronic stress responses to elevated blood pressure and increased heart rate. When your body remains in a state of high alert for hours, the arterial walls can experience increased strain, which is a known risk factor for long-term cardiovascular disease:

• Somatic symptoms often manifest as tension headaches or persistent neck and shoulder muscle tightness.
• These are direct physical indicators of the bracing posture many people adopt while holding a mobile device under stress.
• The brain’s focus on external threats diverts energy away from standard maintenance functions.
• Gastrointestinal disruption is another common consequence of elevated cortisol (the gut-brain axis is highly sensitive to stress hormones, which can alter digestion and lead to discomfort or appetite fluctuations).
• These symptoms are not merely in your head, but are the result of the body’s resources being rerouted to support a perceived emergency state.

4. Sleep Disruption and Circadian Rhythm Interference

Sleep is often the first casualty of late-night news consumption. Blue light exposure from smartphone screens, for example, suppresses melatonin production. When melatonin levels are low, the body struggles to transition into the deep, restorative stages of sleep required for brain health.

Beyond the light itself, pre-sleep cognitive arousal plays a critical role. The emotional “charge” of social media reels and news keeps the brain in a state of high beta-wave activity. This mental alertness makes it difficult for the heart rate to drop and the nervous system to relax, significantly delaying sleep onset:

• The chronic sleep reduction is directly linked to immune impairment and metabolic dysfunction.
• When doomscrolling replaces rest, the body loses its window for cellular repair and memory consolidation.
• The combination of high-energy blue light and high-stress content creates a double hit to the circadian rhythm that can take days to recalibrate.

Understanding the Health Risks of Doomscrolling

To wrap it all up, doomscrolling is a behavioural habit that actively triggers stress pathways and compromises sleep and cognitive function. The physiological impacts accumulate with every repeated session, leading to long-term strain on the cardiovascular and nervous systems. Recognizing these biological costs is the first step toward reclaiming your health.

Awareness of such issues will help you make measurable behavioral changes, set aside time for rest, and shift from reactive consumption to intentional engagement. You can switch from social media to continuous learning apps and adjust your consumption by testing different patterns and physiological effects.

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