Human brains grew larger and more complex as we evolved, with a prefrontal cortex that can control base impulses and navigate complex social behavior. Still, it hasn't evolved to handle the constant stream of bad news that barrages modern society, according to Science Daily.
Globally, 40% of people report avoiding the news, per a Reuters study. That's the highest number ever recorded.
"As a researcher in developmental psychology, focusing on social development and psychological well-being, I argue that news fatigue is not laziness, weakness or a generational decline in civic interest. It’s the predictable response of a human brain meeting an environment it was never designed to navigate," psychology lecturer Ali Jasemi wrote in Science Daily.
Jasemi added: "We are the same species as we were thousands of years ago. What’s changed is the size of the world it’s asked to scan for threats."
Consuming constant streams of bad news can bring depression, anxiety, and more.
That's because, as Dr. Julie Croff, a professor at Oklahoma University told the Oklahoma News, it makes your brain believe it's under threat.
"It activates our body's stress response system," she said, adding, "It releases a stress hormone. And this stress system really exists to help us respond to immediate danger. The fight-flight- freeze sort of action. When these signals are constant in a news cycle, cortisol can stay elevated longer than it's supposed to. It can have impacts on us as individuals. It can reduce our cognitive flexibility. Make it harder to concentrate. And leave people feeling just sort of mentally fatigued. People might notice they feel tense or distracted if they're engaging with the news."
Why do we do it? That's another function of the brain.
Research shows negative stimulus triggers a dopamine hit -- aka, it unconsciously lights up our feel-good reward system -- and that keeps us hooked.
So, what's the answer? Jasemi suggests this.
"The fix is to manage the consumption and the sources ... Containing news consumption to defined windows of time reduces the sense of being overwhelmed. Choosing depth over volume also matters: one carefully reported long-form article will inform you better than bursts of random, unreliable and emotionally loaded posts on Instagram.
"There is also value in distinguishing between information and action — research on perceived control and stress consistently shows that the gap between awareness and agency is one of the strongest predictors of psychological distress. Identifying what you can actually do about what you read in the news, however small, regulates that response."
