Social Media and Public Health
I think I have said the name "Dr. Vivek Murthy" at least 20 times this week.
The United States surgeon general issued an advisory recently warning that too much social media exposure poses a "profound risk" to the mental health of young people.
Almost everyone I spoke with about the news said something like "Oh, I knew that already" - but when discussed further, no one could really back up their intuitions with facts or evidence.
Now they can, without too much effort. It is all spelled out in the advisory at the link below.
One striking fact that stayed with me is this one:
A longitudinal cohort study of U.S. adolescents aged 12–15 (n=6,595) that adjusted for baseline mental health status found that adolescents who spent more than 3 hours per day on social media faced double the risk of experiencing poor mental health outcomes including symptoms of depression and anxiety.
The advisory’s conclusion is that while there isn't enough information to say that social media is SAFE, there is growing evidence it is UNSAFE. And in the context of a national youth mental health crisis, the concern is social media needs to be addressed quickly. Yes, through more research but also by responsible actions from policymakers, tech companies, parents and children.
Regarding research. For those who cite the previous generation of media studies that failed to find causal links between exposure to content and behavior in the real world, they should be ready for new findings.
The new studies go beyond observing that children are simply being exposed to harmful content, ranging from violent and sexual content, to bullying and harassment - they link social media use to compromised sleep patterns and valuable in-person time with family and friends.
So, are Likes and Shares an issue?
The nation's top public health official told us what he thinks.
Hopefully we won't just scroll past it.
Full release here ...
