Dopamine fasting

Some examples of addictive and impulsive behaviors in the present that are targeted by dopamine fasting include but are not limited to: social media use, emotional eating, internet or gaming, gambling or shopping, porn or masturbation.

[5][6] Some proponents limit the process to avoiding online technology; others extend it to abstaining from all work, exercise, physical contact and unnecessary conversation.

[11][8] An extreme form of dopamine fasting would be complete sensory deprivation, where all external stimuli are removed to promote a sense of calm and wellbeing.

[10][6] An account in Vice said, "If the idea of abstaining from anything fun in order to increase your mental clarity is appealing, congratulations: You and the notorious biohackers in Silicon Valley are on the same wave.

[10] Ciara McCabe, Associate Professor in Neuroscience at the University of Reading, considers the idea that the brain could be "reset" by avoiding dopamine triggers for a short time to be "nonsense".

[9] Besides impulsive behavior control, which is regulated by the prefrontal cortex,[17] it has never been conclusively proven that technology use hardens the brain to dopamine’s effects.