“An unfair fight”: US Surgeon General declares war on social media

Emma Lembke was 12 years old when many of her friends started using phones and social media.

“It stopped every one of them from talking to me, from hanging out with me, even from playing on the playground or hanging out outside at school. It felt like my interactions were dwindling,” Lembke told NPR.

This wasn’t just their experience. On average, teenagers in the US spend almost 5 hours a day on social media. And children and young people seem to be paying the price.

People who spend more than three hours a day on social media have twice the risk of mental health problems such as depression and anxiety, according to a study published in 2019 and cited by the Ministry of Health.

Clinical psychologist Lisa Damour, who specializes in adolescent anxiety, says the more time a teen spends on their phone, the less likely they are to focus on other aspects of their life.

“Too much time on social media gets in the way of the things we know are good for kids, like getting plenty of sleep, spending time with people and interacting face-to-face, being physically active, and focusing meaningfully on their schoolwork,” Damour told NPR. “So that’s an area where we’re concerned that they’re missing out on things that are good for overall development.”

The Surgeon General’s call to action

Vivek Murthy, US Surgeon General, has focused on what he has called the “youth mental health crisis” in the United States.

This week he published a commentary in New York Times calls for social media warnings, like those on cigarettes and alcohol, to make young people aware of the danger that social media poses to their mental wellbeing and development. He points to the success of tobacco and alcohol labels in discouraging consumption.

“The data we have from this experience, particularly from tobacco labels, shows us that these can actually be effective in raising awareness and changing behavior. But they have to be accompanied by the real changes, (like) the platforms themselves,” Murthy said. consider it Presenter Mary Louise Kelly.

“Currently, young people face serious dangers on the Internet: violence and sexual content, bullying and harassment, and features designed to manipulate their developing brains and encourage excessive use.”

Murthy’s recommendations also include keeping children away from social media platforms until their critical thinking skills have had sufficient time to develop and strengthen against what the algorithms may show them.

“Imagine putting a young person – an adolescent, a teenager – up against the best product developers in the world who are using the latest brain science to figure out how to maximize the time you spend on a platform. That’s the definition of an unfair battle, and that’s exactly what our kids are dealing with today,” he said.

New guidelines for the future

Damour says the health minister’s call for labelling is a good start to addressing the wider issue of the impact of mobile phone addiction on young people.

“Another important point about the Secretary of Health’s recommendation is that he’s calling for legislation. He’s calling for Congress to step in and help regulate what media children can be exposed to,” she said. “And I think that’s a big issue right now. The responsibility for that lies entirely with parents, and they have to take responsibility for something that should really be regulated at the legislative level in Congress.”

Both Murthy and Damour say that raising parents’ awareness of certain strategies can also help teens lead more balanced lives. These can include:

• Wait until your children are out of middle school before you allow them to create social media profiles.
• Text messaging serves as a stepping stone for teens to stay in touch with peers.
• And ensure “phone-free zones” are maintained around bedtime, mealtimes and social gatherings.