MINDFUL WELLBEING

Ali Roff Farrar shares expert advice, ideas, stats and the newest research on all things wellbeing, including an antidote for brain rot, how to create your own 'fourth space', a fun way to ward-off Alzheimer's, yoga poses for tech-neck and an easy way to live longer...

- Ali Roff Farrar

The perfect antidote to brain rot

‘Doom-scroll related anxiety’ has tripled in young adults in the last few years, according to research. But there is a way to boost our mental resilience and reduce these worries, explains Dr Balachundhar Subramaniam, professor of anaesthesiology at Harvard and the Director of the Sadhguru Center for a Conscious Planet

‘Brain rot refers to the cognitive decline caused by the overconsumption of fragmented, low-value digital content,’ says Dr Balachundhar. ‘Doomscrolling (the compulsive habit of endlessly consuming negative information) feeds this decline by hijacking our attention and trapping us in a “junk flow state”. On average, people now spend 2 hours and 20 minutes per day on social media, reinforcing these patterns. Each swipe strengthens neural pathways rooted in fear, anxiety and helplessness, making deep, focused thinking harder to achieve. Over time, doomscrolling erodes attention span, increases emotional reactivity, and diminishes overall well-being.

‘Meditation acts as the photo-negative of doomscrolling, rewiring the brain in the opposite direction. It builds attention control, emotional regulation, and cognitive flexibility, creating the conditions for sustained, deliberate focus rather than fragmented consumption.

‘Meditation trains the mind to observe discomfort without being swept away by it, helping to break the addictive loops of digital overconsumption. Neuroscientific studies show that meditation thickens grey matter, enhances decision-making regions, and calms the amygdala, the brain's fear centre.

‘Even short, daily practices, such as the 7-minute meditation offered in the free app Miracle of Mind, can help start reshaping the brain toward calmness, clarity, and resilience.