Addicted to Scrolling: TikTok and Sleep

Now home to viral dance routines, DIY videos and virtually anything else you can conceive of, TikTok largely took a backseat to other social media giants for quite some time. But with an abundance of time on our hands, courtesy of quarantines and lockdowns, 2020 was the dawn of a new age for the platform. (1)

And while we leaned heavily on the platform for gardening tips and sourdough bread how-to’s, TikTok and sleep became chummy bedfellows, too — for better or worse. Fast forward a few years, and it looks like the platform is still an alluring go-to for sleep advice and doom scrolling well past our bedtimes. 

With 3.2 million posts on sleep, you can certainly find a good sleepy girl mocktail recipe or familiarize yourself with what’s new and good in sleep supplements, but make no mistake, TikTok is just like any other social media platform. And if you’re not careful, those sticky algorithms could snooker your sleep instead of giving it a boost. 

Note: The content on Sleepopolis is meant to be informative in nature, but it shouldn’t be taken as medical advice, and it shouldn’t take the place of medical advice and supervision from a trained professional. If you feel you may be suffering from any sleep disorder or medical condition, please see your healthcare provider immediately. 

Long Story Short

• TikTok (like most social media platforms) has the potential to be quite addictive. (2) Algorithm-driven content and short video clips are designed to grab your attention and keep it for as long as possible.
• While the stimulating content that floods the platform can impair sleep efficiency and duration, blue light exposure and FOMO also play a role.
• TikTok and sleep may not go hand in hand, but there are steps you can take to mitigate its potentially harmful effects on your sleep.

Why Is TikTok So Addicting? 

Dan Gartenberg, a sleep scientist and sleep health advisor for CPAP.com, says that, like all social media platforms, “TikTok was designed to be a dopamine addiction machine. By presenting entertaining, bite-sized material in brief 15- to 60-second video clips, the brain gets a continuous short burst of dopamine, the neurotransmitter that plays a role in the reward system of the brain.” Pair stimulating content that hits right with your brain’s reward system, and there’s your recipe for addiction. (3)

Gartenberg goes on to tell Sleepopolis that what makes that addictive effect even worse is the algorithm-driven content. (4) Ultimately, these personalized clips and videos that target the user’s interests leave people feeling like they need to get to the end of the internet — sleep be damned. (3)

Finally, Gartenberg adds that social validation (through likes, comments, and shares) further reinforces the platform’s addictive nature. “The platform provides people with almost constant approval and a community they feel a part of.” Ultimately, he says, “People love feeling validated and accepted, so when they find it in the form of likes and comments, they continue to chase it, however illusory it may be.” (3) (5)

How Does TikTok Affect Sleep? 

From stimulating content to blue light exposure that takes aim at your melatonin production, Gartenberg says TikTok can harm sleep in more ways than one. 

Stimulating Content

“Screen time that involves clicking through content (as opposed to passively watching TV) tends to be overly stimulating to the brain, making it more difficult to relax and fall asleep,” says Gartenberg. He adds that “Social media platforms like TikTok can boost dopamine (the reward neurotransmitter) and cortisol (the stress hormone),” — both of which can impair sleep. (3)

Blue Light Exposure

If you haven’t heard the news, blue light emitted from your phone can meddle with your brain’s production and release of melatonin — the hormone that helps regulate your circadian rhythm (or sleep-wake cycle). (6) (7) Digging into existing research, we found that while blue light exposure can decrease melatonin production somewhere to the tune of 55 percent and delay sleep onset by as much as 1.5 hours, it can also increase alertness — not what you want come bedtime — and impair your sleep efficiency. (8) (9)

FOMO

Anyone who’s ever scrolled well past their bedtime can attest to the fact that FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) is real. In the effort to keep up and keep abreast of the goings-on, many people may end up scrolling on and on… and on. and while you may be informed, you’re not doing your sleep any favors. (10)

Social Media and Mental Health

Social media has greatly improved our connectivity, but it’s not without its pitfalls, especially for teens. While this segment of the population may find fantastic outlets for creativity and peer support through social media, these platforms can sabotage their mental health in the absence of discretion and oversight. Aside from the obvious concerns with comparison traps, body image issues, and cyberbullying, research shows that social media use can increase feelings of loneliness, depression, and low self-esteem, all of which can end up having a profound impact on sleep if left unchecked. (11 (12) (13) Adults aren’t immune to these pitfalls either, so it’s important that all social media users have strategies in place to protect their mental health.  

Tips to Reduce Late-Night Scrolling

Undoubtedly, TikTok does what it’s supposed to do: grab your attention and keep it. And while it’s fine to hit up the platform to get out of your head, relax, and unwind, TikTok and sleep aren’t always the best allies. The fact is, hanging out on TikTok can mess with your sleep — if you let it. Ahead, Gartenberg shares some tips and best practices to help you keep your social media scrolling in check. 

Keep Your Phone Out of the Bedroom

According to Gartenberg, one of the easiest ways to reduce or prevent late-night scrolling on TikTok (or any social media) is to simply “remove your phone from the room, or at least [have it] out of reach before bedtime.” (14) (15)

If keeping your phone in another room isn’t an option, Gartenberg suggests putting it in airplane mode to reduce the temptation of checking notifications and the urge to grab it and scroll. “By simply making your phone more difficult to access, you won’t be able to scroll on TikTok and endlessly watch the short-form videos that will keep you up at night,” he says. 

If you’re worried about missing any emergency messages in airplane mode, you can always put your phone on do not disturb and experiment with those settings instead. 

Set Social Media Time Limits

Gartenberg says setting timers on your phone is a great way to manage your time on TikTok. It’s as easy as it sounds: To eliminate scrolling through the platform endlessly, set a timer for however long you want to scroll (just be reasonable). (16)

Try Some More Relaxing Pre-bedtime Activities

Gartenberg suggests trying something less stimulating before bed to help you fall asleep easily, like reading a book or taking a warm bath. (16)

TikTok and Responsible Social Media Use

While expanding viewership and keeping them scrolling is the name of the game, a representative from TikTok told us that healthy use of the platform is always encouraged. 

“We believe digital experiences should bring joy and play a positive role in how people express themselves, discover ideas, and connect,” they said. “Having a positive relationship with digital devices and apps isn’t just about measuring screen time; it’s also about feeling in control of how we use technology and ensuring that the time we spend online contributes positively to our sense of well-being.”

To that end, the rep noted that “In 2020, TikTok partnered with several top creators to create unique and proactive in-app short videos to encourage people to take a break and do something offline, like explore the city or read a book.” (17) (18)

The platform also rolled out Sleep Reminders to help people more easily plan when they want to be offline at night. Explaining how the sleep reminders and screen time features work, the TikTok rep offered the following information: (19)

TikTok and Sleep Reminders

• Community members can set a sleep reminder for themselves, which, when reached, will remind them that it’s time to log off.
• People can schedule specific periods of time when push notifications are muted on their devices. When sleep reminders are turned on, the app also mutes push notifications after sleep time begins to reduce distractions.
• By default, teens aged 13-15 do not receive push notifications from 9 p.m. to 8 a.m., and teens aged 16-17 have push notifications disabled from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m.

FAQs

The Last Word From Sleepopolis 

Social media platforms like TikTok can enrich our lives and broaden our horizons — when used responsibly. And while it’s ok to enjoy the platform and everything it has to offer, just be sure you’re not trading sleep for Tiktok scrolling late into the night. 

Sources

1. Tolentino M, Millerd S, Bali NZ, et al. Next Gen Hawai’i: Collaborative COVID-19 Social Media Initiative to Engage Native Hawaiian, Other Pacific Islander, and Filipino Youth. Hawaii J Health Soc Welf. 2022;81(7):201-208.
2. Montag, C., Yang, H., & Elhai, J. D. (2021). On the Psychology of TikTok Use: A First Glimpse From Empirical Findings. Frontiers in Public Health, 9, 641673. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.641673
3. Almachnee, Renata & Cozzie, Mary. (2022). Social Media and Dopamine: Studying Generation Z and Dopamine Levels. Journal of Student Research. 11. 10.47611/jsrhs.v11i4.3649. 
4. How Tiktok recommends content | tiktok help center. (n.d.-b). https://support.tiktok.com/en/using-tiktok/exploring-videos/how-tiktok-recommends-content 
5. Yared L, Rodrigues K, Mangal R, Stead TS, Ganti L. Sleep Hygiene, Daytime Sleepiness, and Coping Mechanisms Amongst US Adults. Cureus. 2023;15(9):e45608. Published 2023 Sep 20. doi:10.7759/cureus.45608
6. Poza, J., Pujol, M., Ortega-Albás, J., & Romero, O. (2022). Melatonin in sleep disorders. Neurología (English Edition), 37(7), 575-585. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nrleng.2018.08.004
7. Chronobiology in medicine. (n.d.-a). https://www.chronobiologyinmedicine.org/m/journal/view.php?number=167 
8. Höhn C, Schmid SR, Plamberger CP, et al. Preliminary Results: The Impact of Smartphone Use and Short-Wavelength Light during the Evening on Circadian Rhythm, Sleep and Alertness. Clocks Sleep. 2021;3(1):66-86. Published 2021 Jan 22. doi:10.3390/clockssleep3010005
9. Bonsaksen T, Ruffolo M, Price D, et al. Associations between social media use and loneliness in a cross-national population: do motives for social media use matter? Health Psychol Behav Med. 2023;11(1):2158089. Published 2023 Jan 1. doi:10.1080/21642850.2022.2158089
10. Azem L, Al Alwani R, Lucas A, et al. Social Media Use and Depression in Adolescents: A Scoping Review. Behav Sci (Basel). 2023;13(6):475. Published 2023 Jun 6. doi:10.3390/bs13060475
11. Colak M, Bingol OS, Dayi A. Self-esteem and social media addiction level in adolescents: The mediating role of body image. Indian J Psychiatry. 2023;65(5):595-600. doi:10.4103/indianjpsychiatry.indianjpsychiatry_306_22
12. Celmer, L. (2022a, September 7). Ninety-three percent of gen Z admit to staying up due to social media. American Academy of Sleep Medicine – Association for Sleep Clinicians and Researchers. https://aasm.org/are-you-tiktok-tired-93-of-gen-z-admit-to-staying-up-past-their-bedtime-due-to-social-media/
13. Make your day. TikTok. (n.d.). https://www.tiktok.com/@tiktoktips/video/6781609272263347461?is_from_webapp=1&web_id=7381947931434239518 
14. Make your day. TikTok. (n.d.-a). https://www.tiktok.com/@tiktoktips/video/6781609526077508869?embed_source=121374463%2C121442748%2C121439635%2C121433650%2C121404359%2C121351166%2C121331973%2C120811592%2C120810756%3Bnull%3Bembed_share&refer=embed&referer_url=newsroom.tiktok.com%2Fen-us%2Fhelping-users-manage-their-screen-time&referer_video_id=6781609526077508869 
15. Screen time | tiktok help center. (n.d.-e). https://support.tiktok.com/en/account-and-privacy/account-information/screen-time 

Gartenberg. Dan. Personal Interview. June 09, 2024. 

TikTok Representative. Personal Interview. June 09, 2024.