Social media plays a huge role in how many of us spend our days. Around the world, people between ages 16 and 64 spend an average of two and a half hours per day on social media. Younger generations may spend three to four hours on their electronic devices, and some studies show teens spend an average of seven and a half hours a day on social media.

While I was looking at how much time we spend on social media—about 75 hours a month!—I was surprised to see how little time is spent on different platforms. Most people spend under three minutes on Instagram and a little under six minutes on TikTok at a time. One study found that people switched between apps as quickly as every 19 seconds! These numbers seemed shockingly short at first glance. But then I thought about my own social media use and realized that I’ve caught myself jumping from app to app and always end up distracted or not interested enough to stay on one platform. It made me wonder if social media has caused us to have shortened attention spans and why we seem to consume so much social media in such a quick manner. What is the effect of social media usage on our brains?

Many studies relate how social media can have negative effects on our brains, such as a lower working memory capacity and shortened attention span. Since the early 2000s our attention spans have shrunk from an average of 12 seconds to eight seconds. Even a goldfish’s attention span is nine seconds! Some experts argue that the speed and magnitude at which younger generations receive information is what drives us to turn away from in-person interactions back to our phones. We want to make sure that we are not missing anything. Other research has shown that people who frequently use social media might find it harder to focus on tasks and can be more distracted when doing anything, including work that’s not on social media.

Some people even develop addict-like behavior when they’re away from their phones too long, which brings up the question of whether our brain structure reflects these social media-induced behavioral changes. Our complex brain structure uses many “circuits” to make sure we can talk to each other, remember what we talked about (or not), and recognize faces of friends and family. Everything that we do in daily life depends on what area of the brain these circuits are found in and the health of the tissue there. Studies that explore internet addiction have shown a decrease in volume of a type of tissue called gray matter in different areas of the brain, specifically in the area related to distractedness. This is important because gray matter processes the information in our brain—we definitely don’t want to lose it. Increased social media use has also been associated with gray matter density decreases in brain regions that relate to addiction-like behavior.

Even after reviewing the research, I do not think that this age of social media is all bad. I was born in the mid-1990s and grew up with the development of social media. When used correctly, I think social media can be a positive experience. We can connect to others more easily and build a network of support. Though it can feel like there is almost too much (and sometimes false) information, we have access to information we might not have had previously.

I think, ultimately, we should aim for a healthy middle ground when it comes to spending time on social media versus other activities and, as with everything in life, find the right balance.