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The social media of the day should be given names like Snapcrack, Instagrams and Tooter, according to the latest research. It seems that spending too much time checking Facebook and other digital communities can be just as much of a detriment to a person’s cognitive stability as getting locked into a savage habit with cocaine or opioids
Earlier last week, the folks at Fox News commissioned a team of “health specialists” to examine the effects of using social media in excess. The goal of the study was to determine whether scouring news feeds for positive affirmation could pose health risks for the user.
It turns out a person who lives and dies by his or her presence on various social media networks can get sucked into a short-term habit, one selfie at a time.
Researchers say receiving “likes” and “comments” can give users the same feel-good effects as snorting coke or other dopamine-releasing drugs.
“Facebook likes and comments activate similar parts of the brain as opioids, where each like or positive comment activates the reward system and the brain releases dopamine,” said Dr. Tara Emrani, a psychologist at NYU Langone Health.
“So, arguably, the feelings/experiences of the brain, as a result of Facebook likes or comments, is similar to those resulting from cocaine, albeit less intense,” she added.
This is not the first time scientific minds have suggested that social media is like doing cocaine.
In 2014, researchers at the University of Southern California published a study showing that a person’s Facebook feed has the power to tickle the same parts of the