How does it affect the use of screens and social networks?

According to the data obtained by the “Population survey on brain-healthy habits of the Spanish population”, made by the Spanish Society of Neurology (SEN)more than 70% of adults in Spain exceed the recommended time of using social networks on a daily basis. The second Tuesday in February marks International Safer Internet Day, whose objective is to promote responsible and secure use of the Internet.

“Various studies suggest that a ‘healthy’ time spent using social networks should not exceed the 30 minuteswhile a dedication of more than 2 hours a day would be considered ‘abuse’ and would significantly increase the risk of mental and brain problems. Abuse in the use of social networks interferes with sleep, work and relationships, and significantly increases the risk of mental problems such as anxiety, depression and loneliness. Furthermore, it has been proven that excessive use of social networks reduces the ability to concentrate, pay attention and learn, with what all this implies for the health of our brain,” explains Dr. Jesus Porta-EtessamPresident of the Spanish Society of Neurology (SEN).

But according to data obtained by the SEN, only 30% of the Spanish population would use social networks for less than 30 minutes. And while 34% would dedicate between 1 and 2 hours a day, more than 35.5% would exceed 2 hours, with almost 8% of the population devoting between 4 and 6 hours a day and more than 3.5% more than 6 hours a day.

Another of the data that the SEN study points out is that the use of social networks is more intensive in women than in men. While 38% of women use social networks for more than 2 hours a day (with more than 8.5% dedicating between 4 and 6 hours and more than 4% dedicating more than 6 hours), 33% of men would use them for more than two hours (almost 7% between 4 and 6 hours, and almost 3% more than 6 hours a day).

But, in addition, differences are also found by age groups: while 77.5% of over 60 years old either they do not use them or they spend less than 2 hours a day, 63% of young adults (18 to 34 years old) say they use them more than 2 hours a day. Furthermore, in the case of young adults, 16% use them more than 4 hours a day and 10% more than 6 hours.

“There are numerous studies that have pointed out the various negative effects that social networks have on brain and mental health in all types of populations. But the negative effects of social networks on the young population, which is precisely the one that abuses these technologies the most, is even greater. We know from other studies that Spain It is the advanced country where minors They spend more time browsing social networksand some estimate that Spaniards between 4 and 18 years old spend around 4 hours on average per day online, something that is very worrying, since studies that have been carried out on the effects of social media abuse in children and adolescents point to changes in the neurodevelopment of brain regions and networks related to affection, motivation or the brain reward system, and even loss of white matter in the areas that support language and literacy. They are also credited with much of the responsibility for the progressive increase in rates of depression and even suicidal behavior in children and adolescents.”, highlights the Dr. David Ezpeleta, vice president of the Spanish Society of Neurology (SEN) and head of the Neurotechnology and Artificial Intelligence Area.

Social networks vs television, what is more harmful to the brain?

“On the other hand, the increasing use of social networks among younger generations is displacing television and video games as the main forms of digital entertainment. And while any abuse of screens in our leisure activities is potentially harmful to the brain – because their excessive use is also affects attention, concentration and memory-, social networks, due to their interactive nature and instant gratification, can be more addictive and cause greater damage to brain and mental health,” comments Dr. David Ezpeleta. “In any case, the general recommendation is to try to dedicate less than 2 hours a day to the consumption of digital entertainment.”


Even so, and also according to data from the SEN’s “Population Survey on Brain-Healthy Habits of the Spanish Population,” more than 63.5% of those surveyed claim to spend more than two hours a day watching TV during the week. And on weekends not only the percentage of hours dedicated increases, but also the percentage of respondents who spend more than 2 hours (more than 70%).


On the other hand, the time spent watching television increases by age group. More than half of the People over 60 watch TV between 2 and 5 hours a day, while young people tend to spend less than 2 hours.


“For this reason, one of the ten main recommendations that we make at the Spanish Society of Neurology to have a healthy brain, and that we include in our ‘Healthy Brain Decalogue’, is to try to have moderation in the use of the Internet and social networks, but also of screens in general. Because to have a healthy brain it is important to continue doing non-digital activities, such as reading, handwriting, playing board games, exercising outdoors or spending quality time with friends and family,” concludes the Dr. Jesús Porta-Etessam.