How the 2016 election is messing with your brain

Fear is an effective way to win votes, but it's really bad for our mental health

Take a break from the election coverage, for your brain's sake.
(Image credit: Ikon Images / Alamy Stock Photo)

If there's one unifying theme to be found in this crazy election season, it's fear.

From Donald Trump's dire warnings about undocumented immigrants to Hillary Clinton's thinly veiled suggestion that Trump would lead us into nuclear war, everything about this cycle seems apocalyptic. Aside from making us want to turn off the TV and perhaps hide under a rock, all this fear has a more sinister effect: It's messing with our brains.

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Laurie Vazquez

Laurie Vazquez is a science and tech writer whose work has appeared in Popular Science, Big Think, TIME, and other publications. She's also a children's author and playwright.