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In a nutshell
- Young Americans feel overwhelmed 17 days out of every month, with social media, screen time, and food choices being the top stress triggers.
- More than two-thirds are turning to “less is more” living to cope, simplifying everything from daily routines to food choices.
- Simple eating is becoming a key solution: 74% say ingredient simplicity matters when choosing food and drinks.
NEW YORK — Your phone buzzes at 7 A.M. with work emails, Instagram notifications, and a group chat about weekend plans you’re not sure you can afford. Before you’ve even gotten out of bed, you’re already mentally cataloging dozens of decisions: what to eat, how to respond to that complicated text thread, whether to meal prep or grab takeout again.
If this sounds familiar, you’re part of a troubling trend. Young Americans now feel overwhelmed 17 days out of every month. More than half their time is spent in mental overdrive, according to new Talker Research survey of 2,000 adults.
Social Media and Screen Time Drive Daily Stress
The study found three main sources of stress hitting more than 80% of young people: social life (88%), digital life (83%), and food choices (81%).
Social pressures create their own exhaustion. More than a third (38%) find maintaining relationships overwhelming, while 32% struggle just to find time to hang out with friends. Another 31% feel stressed about scheduling time to hang out, and 27% find keeping in touch with friends online to be too much to handle.
Digital life is a big problem, too. Nearly half (42%) of young Americans find staring at screens for too long overwhelming, while 35% specifically cite social media as a source of stress. A quarter (25%) feel overwhelmed by finding quality content or information online.
“It’s no surprise that Gen Z and Millennials are overwhelmed with our ‘always on’ culture; there is a lot we can’t control, so people are turning to simplified routines to reclaim a sense of calm,” said Suzanne Ginestro, Chief Marketing Officer at Califia Farms, which commissioned the survey.
Food Choices Become Major Source of Anxiety
Even eating has turned into a stressor. Nearly half (45%) feel overwhelmed by choosing healthy foods, while 40% find grocery shopping itself to be too much to handle. A third (33%) struggle with how to properly prepare or cook different foods, and 23% find reading nutrition labels overwhelming.
The ingredient lists on packaged foods have become particularly problematic, with 65% saying they feel overwhelmed by long lists of ingredients and nutrition labels.
More Young People Want The Simple Life
Faced with constant overwhelm, young Americans are embracing simplicity. More than two-thirds (68%) find the concept of simple, “less is more” living appealing, and 61% say they’re already practicing simpler aspects of living.
Young people are incorporating simple approaches into their daily routines (46%), in their homes (39%), in their wardrobes (32%), in their workout routines (28%), and in their diet (27%).
Those who have embraced simpler living swear it has led them to feel calmer (45%), relaxed (41%), refreshed (38%) and has improved their mental health (37%). More than half (57%) have tried to make changes to simplify their life based on things they saw on social media, and for 25%, their experiments have worked.
Simple eating has become a main component for people’s desire to live a simpler lifestyle. One in four respondents said they follow the “less is more” concept when it comes to shopping for food. Nearly two-thirds (64%) said they find the concept of “simple eating” attractive to them. A third said the term brings to mind the idea of eating meals that consist of foods that have a short list of ingredients (33%).
Additionally, 74% said ingredient simplicity is an important factor for them when choosing food and beverage products. A large majority (78%) said they’ve made changes to their eating habits within the last year to focus on better health. They’ve either bought products that have less added sugar (36%), fewer processed foods (36%), or shorter ingredient lists (19%).
Nearly as many (74%) believe simple eating can lead them to better health, and 63% would likely change their entire shopping habits to support simple eating more often.
“A simple diet filled with whole foods and products that contain recognizable, pantry-friendly ingredients can have a profound impact by making people feel better and more aligned with their wellness goals,” continues Ginestro. “It’s a small and approachable, but powerful, way to take care of yourself every day. When people can trust what’s on their plate or in their glass, it creates a strong foundation for living well.”
Survey Methodology
This research was conducted by Talker Research, which surveyed 2,000 Gen Z and millennial Americans between June 13 and June 19, 2025. The survey was commissioned by Califia Farms and administered online.
