Social Media Side Effects

As a seasoned physician and board-certified psychiatrist, as well as a father of teenagers, I see daily the role social media plays in the lives of our youth. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, up to 95% of youth between the ages of 13 and 17 use social media, and over a third of them use it “almost constantly”. Research suggests that teens who spend more than three hours per day on social media are at heightened risk for depression and anxiety.

The U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy recently led a campaign to better protect America’s youth against the harms of social media to their mental health, calling for regulations such as mandated warning labels on social media sites similar to the ones we see on cigarette packs. His campaign is particularly urgent because of the current youth mental health crisis and the lack of transparency about the dangers of social media apps.

Adolescence is marked by a fragile and forming sense of self; evolving self-esteem, body image, and gender identity; and the quest for acceptance. Adolescents are especially vulnerable to the harms of social media. The need for acceptance can be especially problematic for LGBTQ+ youth, who are more likely to be bullied and ostracized. Healthy social media habits are incredibly important during the brain’s formative years.

The surgeon general’s campaign is a promising start, but we must go much, much further.

Sheppard Pratt is a critical part of the solution. We offer the most comprehensive set of youth mental health services in Maryland, with the greatest ability to quickly scale what we do to have population-level impact. We have the expertise and resources to work with agencies across the state to connect every child to high-quality, affordable, culturally competent mental healthcare. Together, we must expand school-based mental health resources and trauma-informed care practices, and routinely screen for adverse childhood experiences in our healthcare settings. We must offer specialized community-based programs that support the entire family. Employers also need to demand far better from their commercial health plans. And finally, lawmakers should work to establish statewide care-coordination centers to lead an efficient process to help young children and teens access appropriate levels of care.

I applaud our team at Sheppard Pratt for serving thousands of children each year with high-quality, culturally competent mental healthcare. But we can’t do it alone; the need is too great. The youth mental health crisis requires a broad response from schools, parents, and lawmakers to help our young people thrive. We all must be the “warning label” to protect our youth.