Independent explainer

A site for people who felt the fog and wanted the paper.

TikTokAddiction.org is an independent science-communication project. It is not a clinic, not a treatment program, and not affiliated with ByteDance, TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Douyin or Kuaishou.

Why it exists

A major review — Feeds, feelings, and focus (Nguyen et al., 2025) — put numbers under a feeling millions of people already had. Those numbers then travelled on X, sometimes accurately, sometimes as “the app gives you dementia.” This site is the middle path: vivid enough to feel, careful enough to cite.

How we write

• Association, not causation, unless a study design can carry the stronger word.
• Platform-agnostic about the format; specific about TikTok when the search term or the paper is.
• No user accounts, no quiz answers on a server, no selling of panic.

Names and medical limits

“TikTok” is used nominatively, to talk about the product. This is not an official page. Nothing here is a diagnosis or a substitute for care. If you are in crisis, use local emergency services.