youth and social media essay

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Social media harms teens’ mental health, mounting evidence shows. what now.

Understanding what is going on in teens’ minds is necessary for targeted policy suggestions

Most teens use social media, often for hours on end. Some social scientists are confident that such use is harming their mental health. Now they want to pinpoint what explains the link.

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By Sujata Gupta

February 20, 2024 at 7:30 am

In January, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook’s parent company Meta, appeared at a congressional hearing to answer questions about how social media potentially harms children. Zuckerberg opened by saying: “The existing body of scientific work has not shown a causal link between using social media and young people having worse mental health.”

But many social scientists would disagree with that statement. In recent years, studies have started to show a causal link between teen social media use and reduced well-being or mood disorders, chiefly depression and anxiety.

Ironically, one of the most cited studies into this link focused on Facebook.

Researchers delved into whether the platform’s introduction across college campuses in the mid 2000s increased symptoms associated with depression and anxiety. The answer was a clear yes , says MIT economist Alexey Makarin, a coauthor of the study, which appeared in the November 2022 American Economic Review . “There is still a lot to be explored,” Makarin says, but “[to say] there is no causal evidence that social media causes mental health issues, to that I definitely object.”

The concern, and the studies, come from statistics showing that social media use in teens ages 13 to 17 is now almost ubiquitous. Two-thirds of teens report using TikTok, and some 60 percent of teens report using Instagram or Snapchat, a 2022 survey found. (Only 30 percent said they used Facebook.) Another survey showed that girls, on average, allot roughly 3.4 hours per day to TikTok, Instagram and Facebook, compared with roughly 2.1 hours among boys. At the same time, more teens are showing signs of depression than ever, especially girls ( SN: 6/30/23 ).

As more studies show a strong link between these phenomena, some researchers are starting to shift their attention to possible mechanisms. Why does social media use seem to trigger mental health problems? Why are those effects unevenly distributed among different groups, such as girls or young adults? And can the positives of social media be teased out from the negatives to provide more targeted guidance to teens, their caregivers and policymakers?

“You can’t design good public policy if you don’t know why things are happening,” says Scott Cunningham, an economist at Baylor University in Waco, Texas.

Increasing rigor

Concerns over the effects of social media use in children have been circulating for years, resulting in a massive body of scientific literature. But those mostly correlational studies could not show if teen social media use was harming mental health or if teens with mental health problems were using more social media.

Moreover, the findings from such studies were often inconclusive, or the effects on mental health so small as to be inconsequential. In one study that received considerable media attention, psychologists Amy Orben and Andrew Przybylski combined data from three surveys to see if they could find a link between technology use, including social media, and reduced well-being. The duo gauged the well-being of over 355,000 teenagers by focusing on questions around depression, suicidal thinking and self-esteem.

Digital technology use was associated with a slight decrease in adolescent well-being , Orben, now of the University of Cambridge, and Przybylski, of the University of Oxford, reported in 2019 in Nature Human Behaviour . But the duo downplayed that finding, noting that researchers have observed similar drops in adolescent well-being associated with drinking milk, going to the movies or eating potatoes.

Holes have begun to appear in that narrative thanks to newer, more rigorous studies.

In one longitudinal study, researchers — including Orben and Przybylski — used survey data on social media use and well-being from over 17,400 teens and young adults to look at how individuals’ responses to a question gauging life satisfaction changed between 2011 and 2018. And they dug into how the responses varied by gender, age and time spent on social media.

Social media use was associated with a drop in well-being among teens during certain developmental periods, chiefly puberty and young adulthood, the team reported in 2022 in Nature Communications . That translated to lower well-being scores around ages 11 to 13 for girls and ages 14 to 15 for boys. Both groups also reported a drop in well-being around age 19. Moreover, among the older teens, the team found evidence for the Goldilocks Hypothesis: the idea that both too much and too little time spent on social media can harm mental health.

“There’s hardly any effect if you look over everybody. But if you look at specific age groups, at particularly what [Orben] calls ‘windows of sensitivity’ … you see these clear effects,” says L.J. Shrum, a consumer psychologist at HEC Paris who was not involved with this research. His review of studies related to teen social media use and mental health is forthcoming in the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research.

Cause and effect

That longitudinal study hints at causation, researchers say. But one of the clearest ways to pin down cause and effect is through natural or quasi-experiments. For these in-the-wild experiments, researchers must identify situations where the rollout of a societal “treatment” is staggered across space and time. They can then compare outcomes among members of the group who received the treatment to those still in the queue — the control group.

That was the approach Makarin and his team used in their study of Facebook. The researchers homed in on the staggered rollout of Facebook across 775 college campuses from 2004 to 2006. They combined that rollout data with student responses to the National College Health Assessment, a widely used survey of college students’ mental and physical health.

The team then sought to understand if those survey questions captured diagnosable mental health problems. Specifically, they had roughly 500 undergraduate students respond to questions both in the National College Health Assessment and in validated screening tools for depression and anxiety. They found that mental health scores on the assessment predicted scores on the screenings. That suggested that a drop in well-being on the college survey was a good proxy for a corresponding increase in diagnosable mental health disorders. 

Compared with campuses that had not yet gained access to Facebook, college campuses with Facebook experienced a 2 percentage point increase in the number of students who met the diagnostic criteria for anxiety or depression, the team found.

When it comes to showing a causal link between social media use in teens and worse mental health, “that study really is the crown jewel right now,” says Cunningham, who was not involved in that research.

A need for nuance

The social media landscape today is vastly different than the landscape of 20 years ago. Facebook is now optimized for maximum addiction, Shrum says, and other newer platforms, such as Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok, have since copied and built on those features. Paired with the ubiquity of social media in general, the negative effects on mental health may well be larger now.

Moreover, social media research tends to focus on young adults — an easier cohort to study than minors. That needs to change, Cunningham says. “Most of us are worried about our high school kids and younger.” 

And so, researchers must pivot accordingly. Crucially, simple comparisons of social media users and nonusers no longer make sense. As Orben and Przybylski’s 2022 work suggested, a teen not on social media might well feel worse than one who briefly logs on. 

Researchers must also dig into why, and under what circumstances, social media use can harm mental health, Cunningham says. Explanations for this link abound. For instance, social media is thought to crowd out other activities or increase people’s likelihood of comparing themselves unfavorably with others. But big data studies, with their reliance on existing surveys and statistical analyses, cannot address those deeper questions. “These kinds of papers, there’s nothing you can really ask … to find these plausible mechanisms,” Cunningham says.

One ongoing effort to understand social media use from this more nuanced vantage point is the SMART Schools project out of the University of Birmingham in England. Pedagogical expert Victoria Goodyear and her team are comparing mental and physical health outcomes among children who attend schools that have restricted cell phone use to those attending schools without such a policy. The researchers described the protocol of that study of 30 schools and over 1,000 students in the July BMJ Open.

Goodyear and colleagues are also combining that natural experiment with qualitative research. They met with 36 five-person focus groups each consisting of all students, all parents or all educators at six of those schools. The team hopes to learn how students use their phones during the day, how usage practices make students feel, and what the various parties think of restrictions on cell phone use during the school day.

Talking to teens and those in their orbit is the best way to get at the mechanisms by which social media influences well-being — for better or worse, Goodyear says. Moving beyond big data to this more personal approach, however, takes considerable time and effort. “Social media has increased in pace and momentum very, very quickly,” she says. “And research takes a long time to catch up with that process.”

Until that catch-up occurs, though, researchers cannot dole out much advice. “What guidance could we provide to young people, parents and schools to help maintain the positives of social media use?” Goodyear asks. “There’s not concrete evidence yet.”

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Social Media

Social media’s positive power for young people, social media has the promise of providing increased well-being..

Updated November 15, 2023 | Reviewed by Ray Parker

• While social media has been tied to negative outcomes for youth, new research highlights the positive.
• Despite the prevalence of social media, the fundamental need for connection among young people remains.
• Social media, when used to maintain offline connections, can foster well-being.

Thanks to my best friend (whom I met at age 13) and her incredible archival abilities, our teen years are expertly preserved like some '90s-era time capsule. Recently, she unearthed (and promptly shared on Instagram) one of our notes that I’d passed to her in eighth grade, complete with colored ink and silly drawings.

She saved most of these notes, individual sheets of notebook paper containing urgent social commentary on the happenings at J.T. Hutchinson Junior High School, expertly folded for efficient delivery into outstretched hands or locker vents. These notes were our daily lifelines to each other, serving as intentional points of connection and friendship .

Almost 30 years later, young people have traded paper and pens for notes shared via smartphones and text threads. Or Snapchat. Or Instagram. The number of delivery methods has grown exponentially since 1994.

Today’s mediums may be more sophisticated, but they help meet the same core need all teenagers possess: to feel connected to their community of friends and peers.

Much of what we understand today about young people and social media skews toward the negative. And this is necessary, as we must understand what may be harmful about these platforms.

Yet, discoveries of the negative tend to bear questions about the opposite—if we know what’s harmful, what’s helpful? Unsurprisingly, the answer lies in connection.

Springtide Research Institute’s most recent report, The State of Religion & Young People 2023: Exploring the Sacred, showed that while some young people didn’t believe sacred moments could happen online, others expressed that they could—and could be as meaningful as those offline. Young people’s descriptions of what made those moments sacred varied greatly, but the common thread was how digital interfaces allowed them to connect to someone or something important.

In this case, digital spaces acted as connective tissue between the physical, the emotional, and the metaphysical, serving as a container for young people to experience connection and the accompanying emotions—more often than not, those moments benefited their well-being.

So what if social media could be part of the wellness solution rather than the pathology problem? Current research is beginning to explore these more nuanced dissections, pointing to how social media interactions can promote positive outcomes.

• Researchers Soojung Jo and Mi Young Jang reviewed prior studies to understand how young people achieve emotional well-being via social media. They found that emotional well-being on social media is defined as,

Being happy and maintaining emotional health through relationships with others via internet-based communication platforms.

Well-being generally occurs when young people approach social media to connect with others, feel safe, or gain information. As a result, they gain better relationships with peers and more positive moods.

• Researchers Chia‑chen Yang, Sean Holden, and Jati Ariati created a framework to understand young people’s social media use concerning their psychological well-being. The model includes activities performed on social media, motives for social media use, and communication partners connected through social media.

Their model shows that:

• Social media use is associated with increased well-being when young people engage actively, directly interacting with followers with whom they have relationships, actively creating or sharing content, or using it to maintain or be entertained.
• Social media is associated with decreased well-being when young people use it to compensate for something lacking. Their use is more passive (i.e., browsing), and their communication partners are mainly those with whom they don’t have strong relationships.

Notice what lies at the core of what is associated with positive well-being instead of the negative. It’s the presence of connection versus a search to alleviate disconnection.

Those experiencing positive outcomes are interacting with people they’re close to and receiving social support based on their interactions with their content. Those experiencing negative outcomes search for connections and turn to social media to fill a void.

Even then, research shows that sometimes these young people still feel they’re falling short, whether they’re genuinely not connecting with others or the connections they are experiencing just aren’t satisfying their need for closeness.

For social media to be a conduit for positive outcomes, young people’s motivations for use matter. For them to be guided to social media for entertainment, there’s a good chance that their core needs for friendship and connection are being met elsewhere. For them to want to use social media to maintain relationships, it means those relationships were formed and solidified offline.

To make social media a place for positive outcomes, what matters most is what’s happening outside it. Social and digital spaces can’t be the only place where life, and the connection that comes with it, is happening. To ensure this technology serves as a conduit for well-being, one of the most impactful things we can do as adults is to ensure young people use it as one of many avenues for connection rather than seeking it out as the primary way to manufacture it.

Whether sheets of folded notebook paper or a series of direct message (DM) threads, young people will use what’s available to them to create meaningful connections. As adults, we must help set the conditions so social media remains a tool and doesn’t become a crutch.

Jo, S. & Jang, M.Y. (2023). Concept analysis of adolescent use of social media for emotional well-being. International Journal of Nursing Practice, 29 (1). https://doi-org.fgul.idm.oclc.org/10.1111/ijn.13116

Smith, D., Leonis, T & Anandavalli, S. (2021). Belonging and loneliness in cyberspace: impacts of social media on adolescents’ well-being, Australian Journal of Psychology , 73:1, 12-23. DOI: 10.1080/00049530.2021.1898914

Yang, C.; Holden, S. M; Ariati, J. (2021). Social media and psychological well-being among youth: The multidimensional model of social media use. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review , 24 (3), 631-650. DOI:10.1007/s10567-021-00359-z

Angela Patterson, Ph.D., is a media psychologist and head writer for Springtide Research Institute, which surveys and interviews young people on topics like mental health, technology, and spirituality.

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Social Media Effect on Young People

Impact of social media on youth: essay introduction, positive and negative impact of social media on youth: essay conclusion, works cited.

Are you about to write a research paper on social media effect on young people? Then check out our “impact of social media on youth” essay sample! Here, you’ll find psychological, financial, and other effects of social media.

Social media is gaining subscribers daily, and youth actively use one or more platforms. Growth in technology has sparked an exponential rate of using social media for communication, marketing, and other activities among youth. While there are many positive impacts of social media on young people, there are also negative repercussions of using various social media platforms.

Youth can utilize social media to communicate their ideas and set up e-commerce marketing channels through social media platforms. However, access to explicit and dangerous information is a major threat to young people using social media. Social media is a prominent part of youth’s life in the contemporary world. Nonetheless, its use should be regulated to ensure that young people only reap the positive benefits of technology.

Social media has facilitated a medium to develop discussion groups covering the subject matter in class; hence, it is a good platform for enhancing students’ performance in school (Boulianne 526). The discussion groups facilitate consultation when students are handling their assignments. Some discussion groups include tutors who can help students grasp the subject matter delivered in class.

Social media has also led to more youth taking an active role in politics. Social media platforms facilitate direct access to political leaders, which has led to more leaders using the avenue to educate their followers (Valenzuela 922). Youth can now participate in lobbying activities and influence the political climate by voting in large numbers.

Social media is an excellent avenue for accessing information related to the issues facing global society. Young people can facilitate solutions to some of the issues by focusing their education on careers that will place them in a position to tackle the world’s challenges (Boulianne 526). 

Moreover, youth are becoming more tolerant of diversity, following the ability to communicate with people from different parts of the world in various interest groups on social media. The enhancement of cultural competence is a desirable effect on social media.

The networks developed through social media interaction processes also enhance youth’s access to business opportunities. Young people are developing small businesses and selling goods and services through social media.

Social media has promoted the development of sedentary lifestyles among young people. Youth spend most of their time chatting with their friends on social media through smartphones and computers, leading to a high preference for staying indoors.

Social media is detrimental to grades in school because studies have shown that as the hours spent on social media increase, grades deteriorate for students.

Social media has also facilitated a platform where young people can be easily victimized by individuals with malicious intentions. For instance, sex predators, identity thieves, and conmen have been targeting profiles belonging to young people because they are easily lured into their traps. 

Parents have been forced to use filtering and monitoring software to protect their children, but young people are still at risk because they use social media from different gadgets away from home (Nikken and Jansz 254). 

Social media has provided young people with a communication avenue tied to various benefits. They include the development of a broad social network that enhances opportunities and cultural competence. However, young people must use various platforms carefully to avoid being victimized by cybercriminals.

Boulianne, Shelley. “Social Media Use and Participation: A Meta-Analysis of Current Research.” Information, Communication & Society , vol. 18, no. 5, 2015, pp. 524-538.

Nikken, Peter, and Jeroen Jansz. “Developing Scales to Measure Parental Mediation of Young Children’s Internet Use.” Learning, Media and Technology , vol. 39, no. 2, 2014, pp. 250-266.

Valenzuela, Sebastian. “Unpacking the Use of Social Media for Protest Behavior: The Roles of Information, Opinion Expression, and Activism.” American Behavioral Scientist , vol. 57, no. 7, 2013, pp. 920-942.

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The Effect of Social Media on Today’s Youth Quantitative Research

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• As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
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Introduction

Literature review, research methodology, addiction and the desire to unplug.

Social media has become a part of the daily patterns of most individuals, forming a link between their online and offline experiences. This has made it the most common tool for communication and interaction among both individuals and businesses. Social media has been used in various ways in the Arab region. For instance, social media has also been used to elicit change in Yemen, Jordan and Morocco.

The protestors in these countries have made note of the significance of social media in addressing their issues that concern corruption and other disparities that oppress most of the population. Besides rallying people around social causes and political campaigns, social media in the Arab region has also been used to enhance citizen journalism and civic participation (Turkle, 2011).

This paper looks at the role of social media in the UAE, and its impact on the youth. In order to achieve this, this paper looks at various social media that are used by the youth in the UAE, what he youth see as the main benefits of social media, level of trust in social media, and the limitations that they face with regard to social media.

Social networking has become the easiest way for individuals to communicate, whether they live in the same country, or across the world from each other.

Social networking refers to the “network of social interactions and personal relationships” that consists of devoted websites or applications, which permit users to communicate with each other through posting messages, pictures, and sharing comments, among others (Oxford Dictionaries, 2010).

The drastic impact that various social networking websites such as Facebook and MySpace have on people’s lives, and the way they communicate with one another, has made this topic relatively crucial.

People who are often addicted to such networks get fairly attached to it, causing them to communicate less with their families and replace the need for face-to-face interaction with their friends. This paper examines the effect of social media on the youth of the United Arab Emirates.

Studies show that the media is used for three primary reasons. First, it is used to bring meaning of the social world. Second, it informs people on how to act within a society. And third, it promotes pleasure and entertainment (Lenhardt & Madden, 2011). Based on these three elements that motivate media, it is apparent that various individuals are impacted in different ways by the media.

The audience has varied degree of reliance on the media based on their relationship with both the society, and the media. Studies show that the reliance of an audience on particular media gives that media a certain degree of authority over that audience. This theory is useful in the explanation of the impact of media during crisis, and will also be useful in the analysis of the impact of social media on the youth of the UAE (Boyd, 2007).

According to Al-Jenaibi (2011), social media has also been useful in developing forums for debate and interaction between governments and the communities, as well as, to enhance innovation and collaboration within the government. Social media has been used for various purposes including relaying information and cultural production, as well as, entertainment.

The rapid increase in the number of youth accessing various social media in the last decade has been driven by accessibility of the internet, especially through the mobile phones (Al-Jenaibi, 2011).

According to Al-Jenaibi (2011), the recent trrnsformations in both political and societal matters have been effected by the rapid adoption of social media as a driver for regional change, especially among the Arab youthm “netizens” and women. There has been increased involvement of both youth and women in political and civic actions owing to increased access to the internet.

At the same time, regional and international level policy makers have taken an active role in the regulation of access to the internet and the use of social media for political and societal activism.

The use of the Internet has grown rapidly in the Arab world due to the diversification of its uses from social neworking and entertainment, to more professional engagements between businesses, as well as, in enhancing the transparency and participatory objectives of governance models (Hinduja & Patchin, 2007).

Although some may believe that social networking has helped our youth in many ways, social networking also possesses several negative features that are not widely recognized. Since social networking involves the Internet, it is prone to several dangers that people can easily come across.

Online predators can easily gather certain information; therefore, people are more likely to get security attacks and are prone to hackers due to the personal information they reveal on these social networking communities (ProCon.org, 2012).

A popular example of this involves people who provide detailed information about themselves on MySpace, without having the option of limiting this information to only people they know/accept. In addition, cyber bullying is very common on such websites and can lead to decreased self-esteem and declining of grades (Hinduja & Patchin, 2007).

The various social media investigated in the study include blogs, micro blogs, social network service, video-sharing service, social bookmarking, and image sharing websites (Ito & Baumer, 2010). The quantitative study involved 30 surveys that were randomly distributed in a population of youth aged between 15 and 30 years from different parts in the seven regions of the United Arab Emirates.

The mean age of the sample used was 21 years, with most of the respondents pursuing tertiary education. However, all of the respondents selected had graduated from high school. Reliability of the survey questions was enhanced by rewording the questions in various ways in order to identify the stability of the responses provided.

No inconsistencies were noted in the retests; hence, all 30 surveys were used in analysis of the research question. The survey was administered online, and comprised questions that sought to measure the emotional and social well-being of the youth.

Some of the questions inquired about their state of happiness or sadness compared to other people who did not have access to social networking, whether they had many friends or were lonely at times, and more questions along those lines.

Face to face communication

The study revealed that despite the prevalence of the use of technology among the youth, most of them still preferred to communicate face to face. Text messaging came in second and the use of social network s third.

Social and digital communication

The sample was also surveyed for their use of social and digital communications. Texting was observed as a common trend among 87% of the sample, followed by social networking and emailing. These three activities were also the most prevalent on a daily basis, in the same order.

Social networking

This analysis of the use of social networking sites showed that it forms a crucial part of the youth’s lives, since more than half of the sample stated that they visit a social site on a daily basis. About 75% of the youth indicated that they were familiar with the privacy policies on social networking sites.

Social networking and social-emotional well-being

Most of the study group indicated that the use of social networking did not influence their social or emotional well being. Some indicated that social networking had a positive effect on them, like for those who were less shy due to social networking, or more outgoing, and more confident.

Social media and relationships

Many youth feel that social media has been useful in enhancing their relationships with both related and non-related people. Conversely, the sample stated that social networking impacted on the time that they spent with their friends or other people in person.

Hate Speech Online

One of the impacts of social media that has not been explored is the use of social media to spread hate speech. The study noted that about half of the sample had encountered various forms of discriminatory content in the various social media indicated earlier. About 25% of the sample also indicated that they encountered hateful content on various social networks on a regular basis.

Table 15: Frustration with Gadgets and the Desire to Unplug.

Strongly or somewhat agree that they:

• Get frustrated with friends for texting or social networking when hanging out together 45%.
• Wish they could unplug for a while sometimes 43%.
• Sometimes wish they could go back to a time when there was no Facebook 36%.
• Wish their parents spent less time with cell phones and other devices 21%.

The study revealed that a considerable proportion of the youth could not operate without a cell phone. A considerable number stated that they occasionally felt the need to do away with social networking. This was especially evident in the frustration that most youth expressed due to the distraction that is caused when they were hanging out with their friends.

During the study, it was identified that the most common types of social media were social networks like Facebook, video-sharing websites like YouTube, and micro-blogging sites like Twitter, among others. The respondents in the study showed high familiarity with a variety of social media, including the privacy policies, and the potential ethical and practical shortcomings.

Social networking was identified to have a positive impact on the youth in terms of boosting their confidence and level of interaction. Social media also served as a reliable means of conveying social issues in the UAE. Further research on the topic can be narrowed down to the impact of social media on women in the UAE.

In addition, more research can be conducted to draw a complete picture of the merits, demerits, and possibilities of social media that have made the UAE one of the regions in the world with the highest internet migration rates.

Al-Jenaibi, B. (2011). The Use of Social Media in the United Arab Emirates – An Initial Study. European Journal of Social Sciences , 23(1), 87-96.

Boyd, d. (2007). Why youth (heart) social network sites: the role of networked publics in teenage social life. Youth, Identity, and Digital Media , 119-142.

Hinduja, S., & Patchin, J. (2007). Offline consequences of online victimization: school violence and delinquency. Journal of S. Violence , 6(3), 89–112.

Ito, M., & Baumer, S. (2010). Hanging out, messing around, and geeking out: Kids living and learning with new media. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Lenhardt, A., & Madden, M. (2011). Teens, kindness and cruelty on social network sites. Washington, D.C.: Pew Internet and American Life Project.

Oxford Dictionaries. (2010). Social network . Web.

ProCon.org. (2012). Social Networking . Web.

Turkle, S. (2011). Alone together: Why we expect more from technology and less from each other. New York: Basic Books.

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IvyPanda. (2019, May 31). The Effect of Social Media on Today’s Youth. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-effect-of-social-media-on-todays-youth/

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Advertisement

The truth about social media and screen time's impact on young people

There are many scary claims about excess time on digital devices for children and teenagers. Here’s a guide to the real risks - and what to do about them

By Michael Marshall

18 June 2024

Tim Alexander

“Get off your phone!” Most parents will have found themselves yelling some version of this at their offspring – often to be met with eye-rolls.

We have all found ourselves spending more time on screens in recent years, with the rise of smartphones and social media. Children are no exception. The covid-19 pandemic also resulted in a huge rise in their screen time as a result of lockdowns and school closures.

There are a lot of scary claims about excess screen time for children and teenagers: that it is harming their mental health, leading to depression, eating disorders and even suicide, and is cutting into time they would otherwise spend socialising or exercising, causing loneliness and poor physical fitness. In short, the fear is that too much time on digital devices is ruining kids’ lives – and tech companies, which have designed their apps to hook us , are complicit. No wonder governments around the world are considering curtailing screen time for under-18s.

Is anxiety rising in children and if so, why?

Yet a closer look at the evidence doesn’t support this overwhelmingly negative picture. This doesn’t mean tech giants are benign and don’t need more regulation. But it does mean we need to think more carefully about what healthy screen time for young people looks like and how best to make the online world accessible to them. So here’s a guide to what we really know about the impact of screens and social media.

One thing is clear in this complex area: children and adolescents now spend a lot of time on screens – just like the rest of us. A …

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Essay on Social Media for School Students and Children

500+ words essay on social media.

Social media is a tool that is becoming quite popular these days because of its user-friendly features. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and more are giving people a chance to connect with each other across distances. In other words, the whole world is at our fingertips all thanks to social media. The youth is especially one of the most dominant users of social media. All this makes you wonder that something so powerful and with such a massive reach cannot be all good. Like how there are always two sides to a coin, the same goes for social media. Subsequently, different people have different opinions on this debatable topic. So, in this essay on Social Media, we will see the advantages and disadvantages of social media.

Advantages of Social Media

When we look at the positive aspect of social media, we find numerous advantages. The most important being a great device for education . All the information one requires is just a click away. Students can educate themselves on various topics using social media.

Moreover, live lectures are now possible because of social media. You can attend a lecture happening in America while sitting in India.

Furthermore, as more and more people are distancing themselves from newspapers, they are depending on social media for news. You are always updated on the latest happenings of the world through it. A person becomes more socially aware of the issues of the world.

In addition, it strengthens bonds with your loved ones. Distance is not a barrier anymore because of social media. For instance, you can easily communicate with your friends and relatives overseas.

Most importantly, it also provides a great platform for young budding artists to showcase their talent for free. You can get great opportunities for employment through social media too.

Another advantage definitely benefits companies who wish to promote their brands. Social media has become a hub for advertising and offers you great opportunities for connecting with the customer.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Disadvantages of Social Media

Despite having such unique advantages, social media is considered to be one of the most harmful elements of society. If the use of social media is not monitored, it can lead to grave consequences.

Thus, the sharing on social media especially by children must be monitored at all times. Next up is the addition of social media which is quite common amongst the youth.

This addiction hampers with the academic performance of a student as they waste their time on social media instead of studying. Social media also creates communal rifts. Fake news is spread with the use of it, which poisons the mind of peace-loving citizens.

In short, surely social media has both advantages and disadvantages. But, it all depends on the user at the end. The youth must particularly create a balance between their academic performances, physical activities, and social media. Excess use of anything is harmful and the same thing applies to social media. Therefore, we must strive to live a satisfying life with the right balance.

FAQs on Social Media

Q.1 Is social media beneficial? If yes, then how?

A.1 Social media is quite beneficial. Social Media offers information, news, educational material, a platform for talented youth and brands.

Q.2 What is a disadvantage of Social Media?

A.2 Social media invades your privacy. It makes you addicted and causes health problems. It also results in cyberbullying and scams as well as communal hatred.

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Essay on Effect Of Social Media On Youth

Students are often asked to write an essay on Effect Of Social Media On Youth in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Effect Of Social Media On Youth

Introduction.

Social media is a popular tool used by many young people worldwide. It’s a platform that lets them share photos, ideas, and stay in touch with friends. Despite its benefits, social media can also have negative effects on the youth.

Positive Effects

Social media allows young people to connect with others globally. They can learn about different cultures and opinions, enhancing their knowledge. It also provides a platform for creativity and self-expression, encouraging youth to share their talents.

Negative Effects

On the downside, social media can make youth feel pressured to look or act a certain way. It can lead to feelings of inadequacy or low self-esteem. Additionally, it can distract them from schoolwork, leading to poor academic performance.

Health Impact

Excessive use of social media can lead to health problems in youth. It can disrupt sleep patterns, lead to addiction, and even cause physical health issues like eye strain and sedentary lifestyle diseases.

250 Words Essay on Effect Of Social Media On Youth

Social media is a powerful tool that connects people from all over the world. It has become a significant part of our lives, especially for the youth. While it has many benefits, there are also negative effects that we need to be aware of.

Social media provides a platform for young people to express themselves and share their thoughts. It can boost their confidence and help them develop their communication skills. Social media also offers endless learning opportunities. Students can find educational resources, join study groups, and even attend online classes.

On the downside, social media can be addictive. Many young people spend too much time online, which can affect their studies and health. Cyberbullying is another serious issue. Some people use social media to hurt others, which can lead to stress and anxiety.

Impact on Mental Health

Spending too much time on social media can also affect mental health. Seeing the perfect lives of others can make young people feel bad about themselves. This can lower their self-esteem and cause feelings of sadness or loneliness.

In conclusion, social media has both positive and negative effects on youth. It’s important for young people to use it wisely and parents to monitor their usage. By doing so, we can enjoy the benefits of social media while avoiding its negative effects.

500 Words Essay on Effect Of Social Media On Youth

Impact on communication.

One of the biggest changes that social media has brought about is in the way we communicate. Young people today use social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to chat with friends, share photos, and post updates. This has made communication quicker and easier. It has also made it possible for young people to connect with others from different parts of the world.

Learning and Awareness

Social media also plays a big role in learning and creating awareness among the youth. It is a platform where they can learn about different cultures, current events, and trending topics. It helps them stay informed and aware of what’s happening around the world. It also provides a platform for them to express their views and opinions on various topics.

Effects on Mental Health

Impact on physical health.

Spending too much time on social media can also affect the physical health of young people. It can lead to a sedentary lifestyle, which can result in obesity and other health problems. It can also affect their sleep patterns, leading to sleep disorders.

In conclusion, social media has both positive and negative effects on the youth. While it has made communication easier and has provided a platform for learning and creating awareness, it can also affect their mental and physical health. It is important for young people to use social media responsibly and to be aware of its potential risks. Parents and teachers should also play a role in guiding young people on how to use social media in a safe and healthy way.

If you’re looking for more, here are essays on other interesting topics:

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Teens and social media use: What's the impact?

Social media is a term for internet sites and apps that you can use to share content you've created. Social media also lets you respond to content that others post. That can include pictures, text, reactions or comments on posts by others, and links to information.

Online sharing within social media sites helps many people stay in touch with friends or connect with new ones. And that may be more important for teenagers than other age groups. Friendships help teens feel supported and play a role in forming their identities. So, it's only natural to wonder how social media use might affect teens.

Social media is a big part of daily life for lots of teenagers.

How big? A 2022 survey of 13- to 17-year-olds offers a clue. Based on about 1,300 responses, the survey found that 35% of teens use at least one of five social media platforms more than several times a day. The five social media platforms are: YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat.

Social media doesn't affect all teens the same way. Use of social media is linked with healthy and unhealthy effects on mental health. These effects vary from one teenager to another. Social media effects on mental health depend on things such as:

• What a teen sees and does online.
• The amount of time spent online.
• Psychological factors, such as maturity level and any preexisting mental health conditions.
• Personal life circumstances, including cultural, social and economic factors.

Here are the general pros and cons of teen social media use, along with tips for parents.

Healthy social media

Social media lets teens create online identities, chat with others and build social networks. These networks can provide teens with support from other people who have hobbies or experiences in common. This type of support especially may help teens who:

• Lack social support offline or are lonely.
• Are going through a stressful time.
• Belong to groups that often get marginalized, such as racial minorities, the LGBTQ community and those who are differently abled.
• Have long-term medical conditions.

Sometimes, social media platforms help teens:

• Express themselves.
• Connect with other teens locally and across long distances.
• Learn how other teens cope with challenging life situations and mental health conditions.
• View or take part in moderated chat forums that encourage talking openly about topics such as mental health.
• Ask for help or seek healthcare for symptoms of mental health conditions.

These healthy effects of social media can help teens in general. They also may help teens who are prone to depression stay connected to others. And social media that's humorous or distracting may help a struggling teen cope with a challenging day.

Unhealthy social media

Social media use may have negative effects on some teens. It might:

• Distract from homework, exercise and family activities.
• Disrupt sleep.
• Lead to information that is biased or not correct.
• Become a means to spread rumors or share too much personal information.
• Lead some teens to form views about other people's lives or bodies that aren't realistic.
• Expose some teens to online predators, who might try to exploit or extort them.
• Expose some teens to cyberbullying, which can raise the risk of mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.

What's more, certain content related to risk-taking, and negative posts or interactions on social media, have been linked with self-harm and rarely, death.

The risks of social media use are linked with various factors. One may be how much time teens spend on these platforms.

In a study focusing on 12- to 15-year-olds in the United States, spending three hours a day using social media was linked to a higher risk of mental health concerns. That study was based on data collected in 2013 and 2014 from more than 6,500 participants.

Another study looked at data on more than 12,000 teens in England between the ages of 13 to 16. The researchers found that using social media more than three times a day predicted poor mental health and well-being in teens.

But not all research has found a link between time spent on social media and mental health risks in teens.

How teens use social media also might determine its impact. For instance, viewing certain types of content may raise some teens' mental health risks. This could include content that depicts:

• Illegal acts.
• Self-harm or harm to other people.
• Encouragement of habits tied to eating disorders, such as purging or restrictive eating.

These types of content may be even more risky for teens who already have a mental health condition. Being exposed to discrimination, hate or cyberbullying on social media also can raise the risk of anxiety or depression.

What teens share about themselves on social media also matters.

With the teenage brain, it's common to make a choice before thinking it through. So, teens might post something when they're angry or upset, and regret it later. That's known as stress posting.

Teens who post content also are at risk of sharing sexual photos or highly personal stories. This can lead to teens being bullied, harassed or even blackmailed.

Protecting your teen

You can take steps to help your teens use social media responsibly and limit some of the possible negative effects.

Use these tips:

Set rules and limits as needed. This helps prevent social media from getting in the way of activities, sleep, meals or homework.

For example, you could make a rule about not using social media until homework is done. Or you could set a daily time limit for social media use.

You also could choose to keep social media off-limits during certain times. These times might include during family meals and an hour before bed.

Set an example by following these rules yourself. And let your teen know what the consequences will be if your rules aren't followed.

• Manage any challenging behaviors. If your teen's social media use starts to challenge your rules or your sense of what's appropriate, talk with your teen about it. You also could connect with parents of your teen's friends or take a look at your teen's internet history.
• Turn on privacy settings. This can help keep your teen from sharing personal information or data that your teen didn't mean to share. Each of your teen's social media accounts likely has privacy setting that can be changed.

Monitor your teen's accounts. The American Psychological Association recommends you regularly review your child's social media use during the early teen years.

One way to monitor is to follow or "friend" your child's social accounts. As your teen gets older, you can choose to monitor your teen's social media less. Your teen's maturity level can help guide your decision.

Have regular talks with your teen about social media. These talks give you chances to ask how social media has been making your teen feel. Encourage your teen to let you know if something online worries or bothers your teen.

Regular talks offer you chances to give your child advice about social media too. For example, you can teach your teen to question whether content is accurate. You also can explain that social media is full of images about beauty and lifestyle that are not realistic.

• Be a role model for your teen. You might want to tell your child about your own social media habits. That can help you set a good example and keep your regular talks from being one-sided.

Explain what's not OK. Remind your teen that it's hurtful to gossip, spread rumors, bully or harm someone's reputation — online or otherwise.

Also remind your teen not to share personal information with strangers online. This includes people's addresses, telephone numbers, passwords, and bank or credit card numbers.

• Encourage face-to-face contact with friends. This is even more important for teens prone to social anxiety.

Talk to your child's healthcare professional if you think your teen has symptoms of anxiety, depression or other mental health concerns related to social media use. Also talk with your child's care professional if your teen has any of the following symptoms:

• Uses social media even when wanting to stop.
• Uses it so much that school, sleep, activities or relationships suffer.
• Often spends more time on social platforms than you intended.
• Lies in order to use social media.

Your teen might be referred to a mental healthcare professional who can help.

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• Hagan JF, et al., eds. Promoting the healthy and safe use of social media. In: Bright Futures: Guidelines for Health Supervision of Infants, Children, and Adolescents. 4th ed. https://publications.aap.org/pediatriccare. American Academy of Pediatrics; 2017. Accessed Oct. 3, 2023.
• Social media can help connect: Research-based tips from pediatricians for families. Center of Excellence on Social Media and Youth Mental Health. https://www.aap.org/en/patient-care/media-and-children/center-of-excellence-on-social-media-and-youth-mental-health/. Accessed Oct. 3, 2023.
• Health advisory on social media use in adolescence. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/topics/social-media-internet/health-advisory-adolescent-social-media-use. Accessed Oct. 3, 2023.
• Social media and teens. American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. https://www.aacap.org/AACAP/Families_and_Youth/Facts_for_Families/FFF-Guide/Social-Media-and-Teens-100.aspx. Accessed Oct. 3, 2023.
• Social media and youth mental health: The U.S. surgeon general's advisory. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.hhs.gov/surgeongeneral/priorities/youth-mental-health/social-media/index.html. Accessed Oct. 3, 2023.
• Teens, social media and technology 2022. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/08/10/teens-social-media-and-technology-2022/. Accessed Oct. 3, 2023.
• Popat A, et al. Exploring adolescents' perspectives on social media and mental health and well-being — A qualitative literature review. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry. 2023; doi:10.1177/13591045221092884.
• Valkenburg PM, et al. Social media use and its impact on adolescent mental health: An umbrella review of the evidence. Current Opinion in Psychology. 2022; doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.08.017.
• Berger MN, et al. Social media use and health and well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer youth: Systematic Review. Journal of Medical Internet Research. 2022; doi:10.2196/38449.
• Self-Harm. Pediatric Patient Education. https://publications.aap.org/patiented. Accessed Oct. 3, 2023.
• Liu M, et al. Time spent on social media and risk of depression in adolescents: A dose-response meta-analysis. 2022; doi:10.3390/ijerph19095164.
• Coyne SM, et al. Does time spent using social media impact mental health? An eight year longitudinal study. Computers in Human Behavior. 2020; doi:10.1016/j.chb.2019.106160.
• Viner RM, et al. Roles of cyberbullying, sleep, and physical activity in mediating the effects of social media use on mental health and wellbeing among young people in England: A secondary analysis of longitudinal data. The Lancet. Child & Adolescent Health. 2019; doi:10.1016/S2352-4642(19)30186-5.
• Riehm KE, et al. Associations between time spent using social media and internalizing and externalizing problems among US youth. JAMA Psychiatry. 2019; doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2019.2325.
• Hoge E, et al. Digital media, anxiety, and depression in children. Pediatrics. 2017; doi:10.1542/peds.2016-1758G.
• How to help kids navigate friendships and peer relationships. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/topics/parenting/navigating-friendships. Accessed Oct. 24, 2023.
• Hoecker JL (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic. Oct. 31, 2023.
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Teens are spending nearly 5 hours daily on social media. Here are the mental health outcomes

Forty-one percent of teens with the highest social media use rate their overall mental health as poor or very poor

Vol. 55 No. 3 Print version: page 80

• Social Media and Internet

Percentage of teens with the highest social media use who rate their overall mental health as poor or very poor , compared with 23% of those with the lowest use. For example, 10% of the highest use group expressed suicidal intent or self-harm in the past 12 months compared with 5% of the lowest use group, and 17% of the highest users expressed poor body image compared with 6% of the lowest users.

Average number of hours a day that U.S. teens spend using seven popular social media apps, with YouTube , TikTok , and Instagram accounting for 87% of their social media time. Specifically, 37% of teens say they spend 5 or more hours a day, 14% spend 4 to less than 5 hours a day, 26% spend 2 to less than 4 hours a day, and 23% spend less than 2 hours a day on these three apps.

[ Related: Potential risks of content, features, and functions: The science of how social media affects youth ]

Percentage of the highest frequency social media users who report low parental monitoring and weak parental relationships who said they had poor or very poor mental health , compared with 25% of the highest frequency users who report high parental monitoring and strong parental relationships . Similarly, 22% of the highest users with poor parental relationships and monitoring expressed thoughts of suicide or self-harm compared with 2% of high users with strong parental relationships and monitoring.

Strong parental relationships and monitoring significantly cut the risk of mental health problems among teen social media users, even among those with significant screen time stats.

Rothwell, J. (October 27, 2023). Parenting mitigates social media-linked mental health issues . Gallup. Survey conducted between June 26–July 17, 2023, with responses by 6,643 parents living with children between ages 3 and 19, and 1,591 teens living with those parents. https://news.gallup.com/poll/513248/parenting-mitigates-social-media-linked-mental-health-issues.aspx .

Rothwell, J. (2023). How parenting and self-control mediate the link between social media use and mental health . https://ifstudies.org/ifs-admin/resources/briefs/ifs-gallup-parentingsocialmediascreentime-october2023-1.pdf .

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The Use of Social Media in Children and Adolescents: Scoping Review on the Potential Risks

Elena bozzola.

1 Pediatric Unit, IRCCS Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, 00100 Rome, Italy

2 The Italian Pediatric Society, 00100 Rome, Italy

Giulia Spina

Rino agostiniani.

3 Department of Pediatrics, San Jacopo Hospital, 51100 Pistoia, Italy

Sarah Barni

Rocco russo, elena scarpato.

4 Department of Translational Medical Sciences-Section of Pediatric, University Federico II, 80100 Naples, Italy

Antonio Di Mauro

Antonella vita di stefano, cinthia caruso, giovanni corsello.

5 Department of Health Promotion, Mother and Child Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties “G. D’Alessandro”, University of Palermo, 90100 Palermo, Italy

Annamaria Staiano

Associated data.

Data available at Dr Bozzola’s study.

In recent years, social media has become part of our lives, even among children. From the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic period, media device and Internet access rapidly increased. Adolescents connected Internet alone, consulting social media, mostly Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. During “lockdown”, the Internet usage allowed communication with peers and the continuity activities such as school teaching. However, we have to keep in mind that media usage may be related to some adverse consequences especially in the most vulnerable people, such as the young. Aim of the review is to focus on risks correlated to social media use by children and adolescents, identifying spies of rising problems and engaging in preventive recommendations. The scoping review was performed according to PRISMA guidelines, searching on PubMed the terms “social media” or “social network”, “health”, and “pediatrics”. Excluding articles not pertinent, we found 68 reports. Out of them, 19 were dealing with depression, 15 with diet, and 15 with psychological problems, which appeared to be the most reported risk of social media use. Other identified associated problems were sleep, addiction, anxiety, sex related issues, behavioral problems, body image, physical activity, online grooming, sight, headache, and dental caries. Public and medical awareness must rise over this topic and new prevention measures must be found, starting with health practitioners, caregivers, and websites/application developers. Pediatricians should be aware of the risks associated to a problematic social media use for the young’s health and identify sentinel signs in children as well as prevent negative outcomes in accordance with the family.

1. Introduction

Media device use is increasing year by year in Italy as well as in many other countries. An ISTAT report referred that in 2019, 85.8% of Italian adolescents aged 11–17 years regularly used smartphones, and over 72% accessed Internet via smartphones [ 1 ]. Almost 95% of Italian families with a child had a broadband internet connection [ 2 ]. Internet connection was mostly used to communicate with friends and to use social networks [ 1 ]. In 2020, COVID-19 pandemic represented one of the greatest disruptions for everybody’s everyday life, in Italy as well as all around the world. From the beginning of the pandemic period, media device and Internet access rapidly increased. In line, a 2021 CENSIS report revealed an even progressive increment of smartphone use by adolescents, which reached 95% [ 3 ]. In particular, the majority of adolescents (59%) admitted they use smartphone even more frequently than in the past with a daily use of more than 3 h in 46% of cases. Adolescents connected Internet alone (59%), consulting social media, mostly Instagram (72%), TikTok (62%), and YouTube (58%) [ 4 ]. In this context, social interaction over the Internet or simply social network consulting may play an important part in the lives of many young people, influencing them and their relationship with self-esteem and well-being [ 5 ]. Not being guided and monitored in Internet fruition, the young may be exposed to several risks, including cyberbullying which affects 7% of children aged 11–13 years and 5.2% of 14–17 years old adolescents or stalking which affects more than 600 minors in Italy. On social media, the young are more vulnerable and may display risk behavior, including pertaining substance abuse, sexual behaviors, or violence [ 6 ].

On the other hand, media and social networks are, actually, present in almost any house and are considered a great resource for anybody, including children and adolescents. Especially during “lockdown”, the Internet usage allowed communication with peers and the continuity activities such as school teaching. Social media services enable various form of communication verbally or visually by internet-based networking, bringing people together, facilitating instant connection and interaction, such as a like or a comment on something [ 7 ]. There was also a “school” use of smartphones and social media during lockdown which represented a tool of information and education [ 8 ].

In line, websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking may be currently use as a definition of a social media. Facebook launched in 2004 and Twitter in 2006 were the first social media introduced, rapidly followed by many others [ 9 ]. Actually, Facebook with 2.9 billion monthly active users, YouTube with 2 billion, Instagram with 1.5 billion, and TikTok with 1 billion are the most accessed social media in the world [ 10 ]. As social media are spreading in every day’s life, regulatory models are required to address a broad range of challenges social media pose to the community, including privacy and protection of sensitive data.

Media usage is related to some adverse consequences especially in the most vulnerable people. The health emergency had a strong impact on the mental and psychological health of adolescents causing changing in their routine and daily activities. Forced isolation increased anxiety and stress especially in the most fragile individuals, such as children and adolescents, leading to a change in habitual lifestyles. The greatest risk was that of taking refuge in excessive use of smartphones, electronic devices, and social networks, running into a “digital overdose” [ 11 ].

A recent survey conducted by the Italian Society of Pediatrics in collaboration with State Police and Skuola.net investigated the relationship with media devices in times of pandemic, investigating the habits of adolescents on the use of media and social networks, underlined that 15% of them declared they “cannot stay without” their own media device [ 1 ].

The aim of the review is to focus on risks correlated to social media use by the young, identifying spies of rising problems, and engaging in preventive recommendations.

2. Materials and Methods

This scoping review has been conducted by The Italian Pediatric Society Scientific Communication Group in order to provide an overview of a complex research area. The aim is reviewing international literature disguising about social media and their effect on the pediatric age, including minors less than 18 years, to underline possible risks found so far, identifying the signs of a dangerous use, and to eventually give new recommendation based on these findings.

We define a risk as the possibility of something unfavorable happens, as an effect or an implication of social media usage and which may potentially affect human health. This scoping review has been performed according to the PRISMA Extension guidelines for Scoping Reviews [ 12 ].

An electronic search was undertaken on PubMed database on 23 January 2022. To avoid missing results that may be of note for our revision study, constructing our search in PubMed, we used all of the important concepts from our basic clinical question, avoiding unnecessary filters.

So, the search terms “social media”, “health”, and “pediatrics” in text or title/abstract were used, with the time span set as “all years”. The search on the selected database has produced n 651 among articles and reviews. Another research was made using “social network”, “health” and “pediatrics” as search terms in text or title/abstract, with the time span always set as “all years”. It resulted in 354 articles/reviews.

The two research were downloaded from PubMed and then uploaded to the web application “Rayyan” [ 13 ], a website used to screen and analyze articles, specific for writing reviews. Additional articles for potential inclusion were identified in a second stage by hand searching the reference lists in relevant articles.

Studies were considered eligible for this scoping review if they met the following inclusion criteria:

• - Full-length articles or reviews.
• - Pertaining to children and adolescents up to 18 years old.
• - Negative impact on a pediatric population using social media.
• - Social media meant as forms of electronic communication.

The exclusion criteria were:

• - Reports not in English.
• - Duplications.
• - Not pertinent field of investigation (e.g., use of the social media to promote healthcare, benefits of social media, social media used to debate on health-related issues, and social network meant as real social interactions).
• - The population analyzed was adult (>18 years).
• - The population had previous pathologies.

To reduce errors and bias, two researchers independently, two researchers conducted the screening process to identify articles that met all inclusion criteria. Using the web application “Rayyan” [ 13 ], duplicates were removed, then titles and abstracts were analyzed to exclude distinctly irrelevant articles. Finally, the eligibility of the articles was confirmed by evaluating the full text. Disagreements regarding inclusion/exclusion were settled by discussion between the researchers.

Relevant articles were selected on the web application “Rayyan” and grouped together based on the issue they were dealing with. Afterwards, data were compiled in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet to calculate frequencies and percentages of the problems related to social media use, found in the research.

All the 1005 documents have been reviewed for relevance and eligibility.

As shown in the Figure 1 , through the help of the web application “Rayyan” [ 13 ] we removed before screening 9 duplicates, 25 foreign language works, and 49 publications dated before 2004. We excluded paper published before 2004, the year of Facebook foundation, because before that year “social networks” was a term used to mean “social interactions in real life”, as they were not pertinent to our research.

Flow chart of the selection process. * automation tools were used: 6 records were excluded by automation tools and 3 were excluded by authors. Twenty-five records were excluded because they were not written in English, these were identified using automation tools, but then checked by authors. ** 49 records were removed because they were published before 2004, and no social network existed before that year.

According to PRISMA guidelines [ 12 ], of the 922 works identified, all abstracts were analyzed, and 832 records were excluded. Around 66% of the excluded records were dealing with other topics (e.g., vaccines, promoting health by social media, social networks meant as real social interactions, and social lockdown during SARS-CoV-2 period), a percentage of 28% of the records corresponded to a wrong population: mostly parents, pregnant women, young adults, or children with pathologies (e.g., ADHD). About 6% of the excluded studies used social media tools to recruit people in their studies or to deliver questionnaires.

In conclusion, 90 were the records to be analyzed reading their full-length articles. The whole article of four of them has not been found (“reports not retrieved”), arriving at 86 reports assessed for eligibility. Figure 1 presents the flow chart of the selection process, adapted from PRISMA guideline [ 14 ].

Of the 86 reports attained, we read the whole length articles and then excluded 20 studies.

Of these twenty, 6 were excluded because not leading to any conclusion; 13 were dealing with wrong topics, such as: doctors’ social media knowledge; social lock down during the pandemic; social media marketing; underage and privacy; survey on how social media is perceived by adolescents; time consumed on social media; predictor factors of problematic social media use. Finally, one was not included because it focused on parents and families.

Searching through the cited studies in the included reports, two reviews which were not initially included in the research were added.

With 68 included reports analyzed, there were 15 reviews; of these two were systematic reviews, one validation study, and one editorial. Cross-sectional studies and longitudinal studies have been considered, eight and nine, respectively.

Many articles reported more than one issue correlated to social media use. The most frequent problems involved mental health, followed by diet and weight problems. Table 1 shows the problematic topics found to be related to social media use in children and adolescents and their prevalence, expressed as percentage, over the 68 reports analyzed.

Social media health related problems in a pediatric population. This table shows the issues found in this scoping review. Depression was argued in 19 reports, being the main topic found (27.9% of the whole study). Diet associated problems were discussed in 15 reports, cyberbullying in 15, psychological problems in 14, sleep related problems in 13, addiction in 10, anxiety in 10, sex related problems in 9, behavioral problems in 7, body images distortion in 6, reduced physical activity and related problems has been reported in 5 reports, online grooming in 3 reports, sight problems in 3, also headache in 3, and dental caries in total of 2 articles.

The most frequent problems found are related to mental health: depression, anxiety, and addiction.

Other problems are related to sleep, diet and nutrition, cyberbullying, psychological aspects, behavioral problems, sex, body image perception, physical activity, online grooming, sight, headache, and dental caries.

4. Discussion

4.1. social media and depression.

We identified 19 publications reporting a relationship between social media use and depression [ 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 ]. Table 2 summarized the main finding regarding each article. Out of them, four investigated the impact of COVID 19 pandemic on both social media use and depression ( Table 2 ).

Social media and depression.

4.1.1. Before COVID-19 Pandemic

Investigating the impact of social media on adolescents’ wellbeing is a priority due to a progressive increase in mental health problems or addiction and access to Emergency Department [ 15 ]. As Chiu and Rutter stated, there is a positive relationship between internalizing symptoms, such as depression and anxiety, and social media use [ 15 , 16 ]. Depression is connected to a rapidly increased of digital communication and virtual spaces, which substitute face-to-face contact by excessive smartphone use and online chatting. The more time adolescents spend on social device the higher levels of depression are found out. In this sense, social media are representing a risk factor for depression in the young. Depression, anxiety, and behavioral disorders are among the leading causes of illness and disability among adolescents [ 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 ]. Key findings which correlate to depression regarding social media exposure are repeated activities such as checking messages, investment, and addition [ 23 ]. The findings were similar all over the world.

For example, in Sweden, spending more than 2 h on social media was associated with higher odds of feeling [ 20 ]. In Egypt, as well, students who have problematic Internet use, have higher psychiatric comorbidities, such as depression, anxiety, and suicidal tendency [ 24 ].

Social media addiction and more precisely Facebook addiction was linked not only to depression but even to dysthymia, so that the expression “Facebook depression” was coined to identify a relationship between depression and social networking activity [ 15 , 25 , 26 ]. Individuals suffering from Facebook depression may be at an increased risk of social isolation and may be more vulnerable to drugs or behavioral problems [ 26 ].

Internet penetrance and connectivity are also connected to cyberbullying which can lead to depression and suicidality [ 27 , 28 , 29 ].

On the other side, physical activity may decrease depression and anxiety, potentially protecting the young against the harmful effect of social media abuse [ 16 ].

At last, even if a positive correlation between internalizing symptoms and media use device is noted, Hoge states that there is also evidence that social media communication may improve mood and promote health strategies in some occasions [ 18 ].

Finally, even if evidence revealed that social media use is linked to poor mental health, the relationship between social media and depression in adolescents is still to be completely understood. It is still unclear whether social media use leads to more depression or if these depressive symptoms cause individuals to seek out more social media, which could feed into a vicious cycle [ 16 ]. Keles’s conclusion as well suggest defining the relationship between internalizing symptoms and social media use as an association and not a causative effect [ 23 ].

4.1.2. After COVID 19 Pandemic

During COVID-19 pandemic, the state of emergency and social isolation determined an increase in time on screen not only as a source of online education, but to continuously access social media. According to recent data, a percentage of 48% of adolescents spent a mean of 5 h per day on social media and 12% spent more than 10 h. Moreover, with that increase in virtual time depression arose [ 30 ].

The degree of social media usage in children is a significant predictor of depression, which increases with each additional hour of social media use [ 31 ].

During the pandemic, depressive symptoms may have been reactive to the context of being afraid of the virus and necessitating social isolation [ 32 ].

However, in this peculiar period, schoolchildren who increased time spent on either smartphones, social media, or gaming had significantly elevated psychological distress, such as depressive symptoms, than those with decreased time spent on these internet-related activities [ 33 ].

4.2. Social Media and Diet

Out of the reports, 15 dealt with the association of social media use and diet [ 21 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 ]. The problems were related to junk food marketing (9 reports) [ 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 ] obesity (4 reports) [ 21 , 41 , 42 , 43 ], unhealthy eating behaviors (3 reports) [ 44 , 45 , 46 ], and alcohol marketing (2 reports) [ 21 , 47 ]. In Table 3 the retrieved articles dealing with social media and diet, and their major findings are presented ( Table 3 ).

Social media and diet.

4.2.1. Before COVID-19 Pandemic

Junk food marketing.

Reports found that children are exposed to the marketing of unhealthy foods on social media and to their persuasive techniques. Digital marketing represents a major threat for children and adolescents in Mexico, because of its persuasive techniques. Cola and soft drinks, sweetened juices and in general the so-called junk food have high followers on Facebook and Twitter. [ 34 ]. This may cause an increase in children’s immediate consumption of the promoted product, unhealthy behaviors and may led to obesity, as confirmed by several studies [ 34 , 35 , 36 ]. Reports agree on the youth major vulnerability to unhealthy food advertisement, including digital marketing, sponsored content, influencers, and persuasive design [ 34 , 35 , 36 ]. This contributes to the obesity epidemic [ 36 ].

Major social media platforms do not have comprehensive policies in place to restrict the marketing of unhealthy foods on their platforms [ 36 , 37 ]. Therefore, exposure to the marketing of unhealthy products, on social media may be considered a risk factor for related unhealthy behaviors.

Analysis of the advertising policies of the 16 largest social media platforms proved them ineffective in protecting children and adolescents from exposure to the digital marketing of unhealthy food [ 37 ].

Among social media, YouTube is particularly worrying considering the affinity of the young toward the platform. Unhealthy food advertisements predominate in YouTube content aimed towards children. In fact, analysis of advertisements encountered in YouTube videos targeted at children revealed that food and beverage ads appeared most frequently, with more than half of these promoting unhealthy foods [ 38 ].

As confirmed by an Irish study, adolescents are very attracted to junk food advertisements and are likely to share comments on their network: generalized linear mixed models showed that advertisements for unhealthy food evoked significantly more positive responses, compared to non-food and healthy food. Of all the advertising, they see in social media, they view unhealthy food advertising posts for longer [ 39 ]. This confirms the vulnerability of children towards ad and digital marketing.

Moreover, it has been demonstrated that adolescent heavy social media users (>3 h/day) are more willing to engage with food ads compared to light social media users, and are more willing to “like” Instagram food ads featuring many “likes” versus few “likes”, demonstrating the power of social norms in shaping behaviors. Adolescents interact with brands in ways that mimic interactions with friends on social media, which is concerning when brands promote unhealthy product. [ 40 ]. There is a need of more strict policies to limit digital marketing, which is becoming more and more intense, especially towards children and adolescents.

4.2.2. After COVID-19 Pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic, this phenomenon even increased. In fact, the combination of staying at home, online education and social media usage have all caused screen time to surge and the food industry has been quick to identify this change in their target audience and has intensified online advertising and focused on children. The COVID-19 experience led to an increase in risk and severity of inappropriate behavioral eating habits, affecting the health and weight [ 41 ].

4.2.3. Before COVID-19 Pandemic

Social media is the first independent risk factor for obesity in primary school children and the second for high school students. In both primary school and high school models, children’s social media use has the highest impact on child’s BMI [ 42 ]. In addition, heavy media use during preschool years is associated with small but significant increases in BMI, especially if used ≥ 2 h of media per day [ 21 ].

4.2.4. After COVID-19 Pandemic

Obesity and social media correlated through junk food advertisements [ 41 , 43 ]. During COVID 19 pandemic poor quality food, energy-dense, and nutrient-poor products consumption increased, leading to the risk of overweight and obesity. The phenomenon has been called “Covibesity” [ 41 ].

4.3. Unhealthy Eating Behavior

Some social media contents promote pro-anorexia messages [ 44 , 45 , 46 ]. These messages are no longer limited to websites that can be easily monitored, but instead have been transferred to constantly changing media such as Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Tumblr. Consequently, pro-eating disorder content has become more easily accessible by the users. Pro-anorexia website use is correlated with a higher drive for thinness, lower evaluations of their appearance, and higher levels of perfectionism, and all correlates with eating disturbances [ 44 , 46 ].

In detail, there is a real bombardment of unhealthy messages on media promoting low-nutrition aliments and sugar-sweetened drinks [ 45 ].

It is likely that the suboptimal quality of online information on social media platform contributes to the development of unhealthy eating attitudes and behaviors in young adolescent internet users seeking nutritional information. They look for nutritional information on internet sources such as commercial websites or social media in order to lose weight. In this occasion, they may be exposed to higher risk of eating disorders due to the high quantity of misinformation. Moreover, they may find dangerous methods to rapidly lose weight with possible harm for their health [ 46 ].

Literature agrees on the risk of time spent on social media as well as on the poor quality and reliability of weight loss information on media [ 44 , 45 , 46 ].

4.4. Alcohol Marketing

Adolescents identify drinking brands to peculiar images of ideal adults. Brands know well this underlying psychological mechanism and promote that identity adolescents seek, with specific advertisement on social media [ 47 ].

Studies have shown that exposure to alcohol in TV or movies is associated with initiation of this behavior. The major alcohol brands have a strong advertising presence on social media, including Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Several studies underlined risky health behaviors, such as illegal alcohol use or overuse. Evidence suggests that peer viewers of this content are likely to consider these behaviors as normative and desirable. Therefore, targeted advertising via social media has a significant effect on adolescent behavior [ 21 ].

4.5. Social Media and Cyberbullying

We identified 15 publications reporting a relationship between social media use and cyberbullying [ 21 , 22 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 45 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 ]. Table 4 summarized the main finding regarding each article ( Table 4 ).

Social media and cyberbullying.

Cyberbullying may be defined as any behavior performed through electronic or digital media by individuals or groups that repeatedly communicate hostile or aggressive messages intended to inflict harm or discomfort on others. Compared to bullying, cyberbullying may be even more dangerous as victims can be reached anytime and in any place. Moreover, anonymity amplifies aggression as the perpetrator feels out of reach.

Moreover, the ability to hide behind fake names provides bullies the opportunity to communicate in content and language they would not use in front of people [ 26 , 48 , 49 ]. As confirmed by Shah et al., the anonymity of cyberbullying increases the risk for inappropriate behaviors among adolescents [ 50 ].

In literature, cyberbullying has been identified in phone calls, text messages, pictures/video clips, emails, and messaging apps. This is a great public health concern: in Italy, 2015 ISTAT data showed that 19.8% of 11–17 years old internet users report being cyberbullied [ 49 ].

This phenomenon is increasing. In fact, the number of adolescents being cyberbullied at least once in their life increased from 20.8% in 2010 to 33.8% in 2016 [ 50 ].

Victims of bullies exhibit increased depressive symptoms, anxiety, internalizing behaviors, externalizing behaviors, and greater academic distractions [ 21 , 22 , 25 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 51 ].

Cyberbullying has been associated with higher risks of depression, paranoia, anxiety, and suicide than the traditional form of bullying [ 21 , 22 ]. According to a metanalysis of 34 studies, traditional bullying increased suicide ideation by a factor of 2.16, whereas cyberbullying increased it by a factor of 3.12 [ 39 ].

In adolescence, social media intense or problematic use and frequent online contact with strangers are all independently associated with cyberbullying [ 45 , 52 , 53 ]. In this contest, social media represent a risk factor for cyberbullying and for inappropriate behavior related to it. In fact, problematic social media use is an important driver of cyberbullying victimization and perpetration, especially among girls [ 50 , 53 ]. The highest percentage is observed in adolescents, aged 13 to 15 years as suggested by literature reviews and, in particular, by Marengo and Uludasdemir [ 53 , 54 ]. However, Marengo also suggests that in presence of social support, the phenomenon is attenuated [ 53 ].

Moreover, having daily access to the Internet and the sharing of gender on social media increased the likelihood of cyber victimization among adolescents aged 12–17 years. Those who use Tumblr and Snapchat were found to become victims even more frequently [ 54 ].

4.6. Psychological Problems and Social Media

We identified 14 publications reporting a relationship between social media use and psychological problems [ 17 , 23 , 33 , 45 , 49 , 52 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 ]. Table 5 summarized the main finding regarding each article ( Table 5 ).

Social media and psychological problems.

4.6.1. Before COVID-19 Pandemic

A high use of screen device has been correlated to a low psychological well-being among children and adolescents, especially among females [ 17 ].

For examples, in Canadians adolescents, the prevalence of loneliness was higher for daily computer-mediated communication users than non-daily users [ 55 ]. As well as for cyberbullying, adolescents may benefit from social support, family communication, and interaction to ameliorate feelings of loneliness [ 53 , 55 ]. Boer et al. confirmed that intense user reported more frequent psychological complaints than non-intense user as well as less family and friend support [ 56 ]. In line with this finding, in Lithuania a problematic social media use has been associated with two times higher odds for lower life satisfaction [ 57 ].

Moreover, an intense social media use correlated to either low school well-being and reduced social well-being (decreased family and friends support and relations) [ 56 ].

A relationship between poor life satisfaction, problematic social media use, and lack of social support was found not only in adolescents, but also in children [ 52 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 ].

Social media use is also correlated with conduct and emotional problems, attention deficit, peer problems, school impairments, and psychological distress [ 23 , 45 , 61 , 62 ].

Social networks and media device use correlate to low academic outcomes, reduced concentration, and procrastination. In fact, problematic smartphone use correlates to a surface approach to learning rather than to a deep approach, leading to reduced creativity, organization skills, own thinking, and comprehension of information [ 49 ].

4.6.2. After COVID-19 Pandemic

During this COVID-19 pandemic, primary school children reported significantly higher psychological distress than the period prior to the COVID-19 outbreak. Studies showed that schoolchildren who increased time spent on either smartphones, social media, or gaming had significantly elevated psychological distress than those with decreased time spent on these internet-related activities [ 33 ].

4.7. Social Media and Sleep

Extended use of digital media screen time correlates with sleep impairment [ 18 , 21 , 22 , 26 , 31 , 43 , 47 , 49 , 57 , 61 , 63 , 64 , 65 ]. Table 6 summarizes the evidence in literature ( Table 6 ). Exposure to screen-based devices, online social networking sites, and video-sharing platforms is significantly associated with sleep-onset difficulties in adolescents [ 18 , 49 ]. Findings from a meta-analysis of 20 cross-sectional studies show 53% higher odds of poor sleep quality among adolescents with consistent bedtime media use [ 63 ]. Moreover, the use of computers and smartphones among adolescents is associated with daytime sleepiness and fatigue, shorter sleep duration, later bedtime, and unfavorable changes in sleep habits over time [ 22 ]. Smartphones may be easily carried around and even taken to bed. Several sleep disorders correlate to both overall and night phone use among adolescents. It has been demonstrated that social media addiction in school students decreases students’ sleep efficiency [ 61 ]. Use of cellphones, particularly for nighttime texting, and consulting social media were associated with insufficient sleep [ 63 ]. A 5 or more hours daily of media devices use has been related to a higher risk of sleep problems when compared to a 1 h use daily [ 49 ]. This finding is confirmed by Buda who correlates problematic social media with about two times higher odds for a bad sleep quality [ 57 ]. Varghese as well associated social media use with sleep difficulties. Furthermore, YouTube user had two-times higher odds for sleep-onset difficulties [ 63 ].

Social media and sleep.

In addition, it seems that girls suffer more than boys from these sleep problems [ 57 ].

Sleeping problems, especially sleep duration, have been then associated with time spent on screen, problematic behaviors, and higher internalizing and externalizing symptoms [ 64 ].

Even among children, there is a problem with extended use of social media sites, which result in sleep deprivation due to delayed bedtimes and reduced total sleep duration and quality of rest [ 31 , 65 ]. The report by Hadjipanayis as well confirms that sleeping disturbances may be associated with the disruption of circadian rhythms due to the blue light emission from the electronic screen-based media devices [ 26 ]. Negative outcomes including poor school performance, childhood overweight and obesity, and emotional issues have all been associated with sleep deprivation [ 21 , 26 , 43 , 47 ]. Inadequate sleep quality or quantity associated to social media use represents a risk factor for metabolic conditions such as for diabetes, cardiovascular disease and for mental problem, such as depression or substance abuse [ 49 ].

4.8. Social Media and Addiction

Ten reports found correlations between social media use and risk of different types of addictions: with internet [ 17 , 24 , 49 , 51 , 52 , 66 ], with substance abuse [ 15 , 67 ], with alcohol addiction and gaming [ 67 ], with gambling [ 68 ], and with tobacco use [ 69 ]. In Table 7 , the major findings of the related reports are presented ( Table 7 ).

Social media and addiction.

Investigating the impact of social media on adolescents’ wellbeing is a priority due to a progressive increase in mental health problems and access to Emergency Department [ 15 ]. Chiu reported that mental health or addiction related emergency department access increased by almost 90% in ten years mainly among adolescents aged 14–21 years. The increment well correlates to an increase availability of social media [ 15 ].

High screen use associated with internet addiction is also confirmed by O’Keeffe who states that technology is influencing children’s lives from a very young age [ 51 ].

More than 7% of youth have problematic social media use, indicated by symptoms of addiction to social media [ 52 ]. Warning signs of internet addiction can be skipping activities, meals, and homework for social media; weight loss or gain; a reduction in school grades [ 41 ]. In detail: concern, loss of controlling tolerance, withdrawal, instability and impulsiveness, mood modification, lies, and loss of interest have been identified as risk factors for smartphone addiction. Females have almost three times more risk for smartphone addiction than males and it may be related to a stronger desire for social relationships [ 66 ]. Main problems correlated to addiction are low self-esteem, stress, anxiety, depression, insecurity, solitude, and poor scholastic outcomes. Smartphone addiction correlates to both fear of missing out (FOMO) and boredom. FOMO is the apprehension of losing experiences and the consequent wish to remain constantly connected with others, continuously checking social applications. Boredom is defined as an unpleasant emotional state, related to lack of psychological involvement and interest associated with dissatisfaction, to cope with boredom adolescents may seek additional stimulation and compulsively use smartphones [ 49 ].

As well as O’Keeffe, Hawi found out that children are starting to use digital devices at a very young age, and so should be screened for the risk of digital addiction. New scales of early identifications have been developed such as the Digital Addiction Scale for Children, validated to assess the behavior of children 9 to 12 years old in association with digital devices usage. Out of the sample size, 12.4% were identified as at risk of addiction and most of them (62.4%) were male. Nevertheless, results demonstrated that weekday device use among females causes more conflicts [ 66 ].

Different grading scales can test addictions. A study assessed 700 adolescents aged from 14 to 18 years and found out that 65.6% were having internet addiction, 61.3% were gaming addicts, and 92.8% Facebook addicts. Internet addict students had statistically significant higher age, higher socioeconomic scale score, male gender, and lower last year grades in comparison to non-addicts. Depression, dysthymia, suicide, social anxiety, and phobias were common comorbidities in addicted adolescents [ 24 ].

In undergraduate students, disordered online social networking use is associated with higher levels of alcohol craving and in pupils aged from 11 to 13, it is associated with a higher likelihood of being substance users [ 67 ]. In addition, excessive video gaming is associated with increased substance use [ 15 , 67 ].

One report showed greater risk for children and adolescents to develop gambling problems. In fact, the prevalence of adolescent gambling has increased in recent years. Across Europe, self-reported rates of adolescent gambling in 2019 ranged from 36% in Italy to 78% in Iceland. Adolescent problem gambling prevalence ranges from 1.6 to 5.6%. Not only adolescents but also children are widely exposed to gambling advertisements on television and via social media. In recent years, there has been an expansion in sports betting online, and this has been heavily promoted by advertising and marketing attractive to adolescents. Gambling is also promoted to children via social media: children are sharing and re-tweeting messages from gambling companies, they are active in conversations around gambling, and regularly consume and share visual gambling adverts. Lastly, there is also a strong relationship between gaming and gambling: in video games, children pretend to gamble and some video games would ask real money to play [ 68 ].

Finally, there might be a relationship between youth using tobacco and tobacco social media posts. It is not clear if the relationship can be cause-effect or only a correlation. Adolescents who participate in conversations about tobacco in social media by posting positive messages about tobacco are more likely to be past-month tobacco users. Posting even only one positive tobacco-related tweet was associated with greater odds of using cigarettes, e-cigarettes, or any tobacco product, compared to those who did not post positive messages about tobacco [ 69 ].

Finally, social media has been associated to social media use and may represent a risk factor for the young as it interferes with dailies activities leading to unhealthy habits. The easy access to social media by smartphone undoubtedly facilitates addiction.

4.9. Social Media and Anxiety

We identified 10 publications reporting a relationship between social media use and anxiety. Out of them, three investigated the impact of COVID 19 pandemic on social media use and anxiety [ 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 22 , 23 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 70 ]. Table 8 summarized the main findings ( Table 8 ).

Social media and anxiety.

4.9.1. Before COVID-19 Pandemic

Evidence agrees that the degree of social media usage in children is a significant predictor of anxiety and perceived stress levels and that it increases with each additional hour of social media use [ 17 , 23 , 31 ]. Anxiety may represent a risk factor for children and adolescents’ health as it influences the way they see their body, the way they feel, and it may impact on social acceptance and relations with peers.

The excessive use of at least one type of screen, including television, computer, social media, and video gaming, has been connected with anxiety symptoms in the pediatric age [ 22 , 23 , 31 ]. Furthermore, in Rutter’s study a significant association between depression and anxiety with social media use has been detached [ 16 ]. Nevertheless, it is still unclear if social media use provoke anxiety or if anxiety is the cause of excessive use of social media [ 16 ]. Emergency department visits for mental health, including anxiety problems, has arisen since 2009, likely linked to the increased use and the harmful effect of social media [ 15 ]. On the contrary, physical activity may protect the young against the harmful effect of social media, preventing depression and anxiety [ 16 ].

In a scientific report, Muzaffar confirmed that an association between anxiety and social media is of note. In detail, increased adolescent generalized anxiety symptoms were associated with increased Facebook use and repetitive Facebook habits. Anxious adolescents may not be able to control their discomfort to the point that they need to regularly go back to check their previous posting on Facebook [ 70 ].

The constant connection to social networks through digital devices, on its side, potentially contributes to feelings of anxiety. Adolescents and children suffering from social anxiety may prefer to interact with texting, instant messaging, and emailing than over face-to-face interactions. However, the behavior may increase risk in individuals vulnerable to social anxiety disorder because substituting digital media for interpersonal communication to avoid feared situations may be reinforced over time, making the person even more avoidant and worsening the symptoms and severity of social anxiety disorder [ 18 ].

However, in some studies, not just overexposure but also underexposure to social media was associated with adolescent anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation [ 22 ].

4.9.2. After COVID-19 Pandemic

Screen time and social media use have increased during the pandemic. Social media has been helpful during lockdown to keep social relationships and not to discontinuate school activities. However, an excessive Internet use may negatively affect children and adolescents’ well being. So, during social lockdown, an elevated psychological distress and anxious symptoms have been described in schoolchildren who increased time spent on screen [ 32 , 33 ]. Children who increased by 15 or 30 min daily the time spent on internet presented a high level of psychological distress.

4.10. Social Media and Sex Related Problems

Studies have found social media use related to sexual problematic behaviors such as early sexual activity, exposure to pornography, and sexting. [ 21 , 22 , 26 , 50 , 51 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 ]. Table 9 summarizes the results ( Table 9 ).

Social media and sex related problems.

The prevalence of sex related problems cannot be accurately recorded as for a wide range of definition and sampling methods and the comparison among reports is difficult.

Especially for girls, higher social media use, associated with lower family affluence and poorer body image, are key to early sexual activity [ 71 ].

Social media use was found to be significantly associated with risky sexual behavior among pre-college students in Ethiopia. Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and other platforms have been identified as a factor that alters adolescent’s perception and influences them to engage in risky sexual behavior. Those who view sexually suggestive Facebook photos have a higher chance of having unprotected sexual intercourse and sex with strangers [ 72 ].

Moreover, youth can be exposed to unwanted sexual material online, including unwanted nude pictures or sexually explicit videos through means such as pop-up windows or spam e-mails [ 73 ].

Children exposed to inappropriate sexual content are prone to high-risk behaviors in subsequent sexual encounters. [ 22 ] Sexting activities may also affect emotional and social wellbeing of adolescents; it is correlated to depression and risky health behaviors, such as substance use, alcohol consumption, and suicide [ 26 , 50 ]. The odds of risky sexual behavior were 1.23 higher in social media user than in other students [ 72 ]. Furthermore, on the internet, pornography is readily accessible by media device, so that Wana found out that 7% of students use social media for pornography. In most cases, adolescents admit they intentionally viewed materials [ 74 ]. Pornographic media depict a fantasy world in which unrealistic encounters result in immediate sexual gratification, and intimate relationships are nonexistent. Repeated exposure of the adolescent brain to the world of online pornography can make it difficult for adolescents to develop mature healthy sexual relationships [ 22 ].

Internet pornography usage has been documented in adolescents before the age of 18. Online pornography is often the first source of sex education for many adolescents, and exposure to violent pornography increases the odds of sexually aggressive behavior [ 50 ]. Peer advice as well as substance abuse are significant predictor for risky sexual behavior [ 72 ].

Finally, among adolescents 10–19 years of age, the rate of sexting ranges from 5 to 22% [ 50 , 72 , 74 ].

Sexting is the use of media to send nude or sexualized contents such as texts, photos, or videos. An extensive sharing of these contents through technology has been connected with a negative impact on the emotional and social wellbeing of adolescents involved. An earlier sexual debut such as the use of drugs and promiscuity have been all associated to the excessive use of sexting. It can also cause spreading of sexual content material without consent, to a third party as a method of bullying or revenge [ 21 , 26 , 51 , 74 ].

4.11. Social Media and Behavioral Problems

Out of the reports, seven explored the influence of social media and behavioral problems [ 22 , 49 , 64 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 ]. Table 10 outlines the highlighted findings ( Table 10 ). Behavioral outcomes usually cover five areas, including hyperactivity/inattention, emotional symptoms, conduct problems, peer relationship, and pro-social behavior.

Social media and behavioral problems.

For children aged 10–15 years old, limited time on social media has no effect on most emotional and behavioral outcomes (and can even positively impact social relationships), while there are strong negative associations between very long hours on social media and increased emotional distress and worse behavioral outcomes, which continue for several years [ 75 ].

In accordance to McNamee, the study by Okada conducted in Japan [ 76 ] among children aged 9–10 years old highlighted that mobile devices usage time of less than 1 h was a protective factor for behavior problems in boys. Instead, the usage time of 1 h or more was a risk factor in girls. Among girls, a dose–response positive association was found between duration of mobile devices usage and total difficulty score. A U-shaped association was found between duration of mobile devices usage and behavioral problems in boys: moderate use of mobile devices might be a tool for relaxation or alleviating distress through interactions with peers. However, in the subscale analysis, boys who use two or more hours of mobile devices showed higher risk of emotional problems and peer problems [ 76 ].

Moreover, the social media violent content exposure may be a risk factor for violent and aggressive behaviors. In this context, levels of aggression are directly proportional to exposure of types of violent media content. Electronic and social media showing contents with fights, stealing, dead bodies, and people’s belongings being destroyed influence young viewers, as per observational-learning theory, making them believe that reacting aggressively in response to perception of any offense is acceptable [ 77 ].

In line with Tahir’s report, Maurer underlined a significant association between exposure to media violence and aggressive behavior, aggressive thoughts, angry feelings, and physiologic arousal. Media exposure is also negatively related to personal adjustment and school performance and positively related to risk-taking behaviors [ 22 ].

Another study confirmed that longer the time spent on screens, higher the risk for behavioral problems among children 9–10 years old, and depending on the content type visualization, the risk for an aggressive and rule-breaking behavior. This association was mediated by sleep duration: longer sleep duration was associated with fewer problem behaviors [ 64 ].

Challenges and risk-taking attitudes are frequent in child and youth culture. However, online challenges take on new meanings when mediated by digital sociability; they appear as a powerful communicative resource to reaffirm belonging, recognition, and audience adherence. They are a media strategy adopted by youth in the construction of an internet-mediated identity in which risk and violence are crucial devices in building a self-image capable of maintaining an audience. Nevertheless, they can involve potential self-inflicted injuries to participants, with risks ranging from minor to even lethal [ 78 ].

Finally, an emerging problem is the social phenomenon called Shakaiteki Hikikomori (social withdrawal). Most of them are males and they usually experience a social reclusion range from 1 to 4 years. They refuse to communicate even with their own family and spend even more than 12 h a day in front of a screen [ 49 ].

4.12. Social Media and Body Image

On social media platforms such as Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram, body image has become an important topic [ 17 , 25 , 45 , 46 , 50 , 73 ]. Table 11 summarized the evidence. ( Table 11 ). People post their most flattering photos and view those of others, creating an online environment that could be damaging to body image acceptance. Spending time on social media puts adolescents under a higher risk of comparing themselves to models that are more attractive. As a result, these unfavorable social comparisons of physical appearance may exacerbate body image apprehension [ 17 , 45 ].

Social media and body image.

Moreover, beauty trends are constantly reinforced through social media networks and image-editing tools are often used to alter images to fit beauty standards. Teenagers who, perhaps, are not aware of these digital changing made in commercial photos may become insecure of their image. This may reduce self-esteem and body satisfaction, mainly among adolescent girls, developing body image concerns, engaging in weight-modification behavior, and potentially developing eating disorders. Nowadays, adolescents, and, in particular, girls, need to fit “social media” standard for photo posting; they use to modify photos with specific programs in order to respect society beauty standard. In fact, 28% of girls aged 8–18 years admit to editing their photos to make themselves look more attractive prior to posting online [ 50 ].

In addition to social media causing body image problems, adolescents with body image misperception may look on the internet for advice on how to lose weight quickly. However, the suboptimal quality of online information contributes to the development of unhealthy eating attitudes and behaviors in young adolescents. It may be that the content of these sites promotes eating disorders by providing unhealthy weight loss advice [ 46 ].

Furthermore, the desire of perfection and selfie mania with repeated selfie can cause depression and self-harm. This is a typical symptom of body dysmorphic disorder [ 73 ].

Finally, this association between the use of social media, self-esteem and body image can be a correlation and not a cause-effect relation: girls with lower self-esteem and sensitive to body image complains may use social media more frequently than girls with a higher level of self-esteem. For example, users can make a “selective self-presentation” where they show themselves only in a positive way on their social media profiles [ 25 ].

4.13. Social Media and Physical Activity

Evidence supports a correlation between social media and physical activity [ 45 , 49 , 57 , 73 , 79 ]. Excessive use of smartphones and other digital devices can also cause physical problems, such as a more sedentary lifestyle [ 45 ], which is positively associated with childhood obesity. In addition, non-physiological postures assumed while using smartphones may lead to cervical rigidity and muscle pain resulting in neck strain or “Tech Neck”. Moreover, “texting thumb” is a form of tendinitis that comes from overusing the thumb from excessive texting, video gaming, and web browsing using a smartphone [ 49 , 73 ].

An Australian study found that non-organized physical activity declines between 11 and 13 years, especially in children with a large increase in activities of texting, emailing, social media, and other internet use [ 79 ].

Another study showed that problematic social media use is related to lower levels of vigorous physical activity, especially in girls [ 57 ].

In Table 12 are listed the reports related to this topic and their major content ( Table 12 ).

Social media and physical activity.

4.14. Online Grooming

Online grooming may be defined as a situation in which an adult builds a relationship with a minor finalized to a sexual abuse using social media. [ 47 , 80 ]. The risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder in the victims is of note and may affect mental and well-being of children and adolescents [ 80 ].

Children are more vulnerable online as they often escape their parents’ control and may be more willing to share information or pictures about themselves than in real life.

Online grooming, differently to offline sexual abuse, is simpler to perpetrate, due to internet’s technology and accessibility. Furthermore, often the perpetrator misrepresents himself as another child or teenager, in order to establish a trusting relationship [ 21 ].

Teenage girls appear to be more at risk, even if the proportion of male victims is considerable too. In general, minors with problematic internet use are at greater risk of being groomed.

Sexual solicitation has been found to be more common in children spending longer time on internet on weekdays, being involved in sexting, having strangers in social networks friends list, playing online games, and chats. The risk is high even for adolescents whose curiosity and unconsciousness set them at risk of being deceived [ 80 ].

Table 13 presents the reports related to this topic and their major content ( Table 13 ).

Social media and online grooming.

4.15. Social Media and Sight

Studies have investigated the risk of social media on sight, in terms of visual imbalance [ 22 , 49 , 73 ]. Evidence underlines that children can develop ocular disorders from excessive screen time, including myopia, eye fatigue, dryness, blurry vision, irritation, burning sensation, conjunctival injection, ocular redness, dry eye disease, decreased visual acuity, strain, fatigue acute acquired concomitant esotropia, and macular degeneration. During smartphone use, there is a reduction of the blink rate to 5–6/min that promotes tear evaporation and accommodation, leading to dry eye disease [ 49 , 73 ].

In addition, excessive screen time and less time spent outdoors may lead to early development of myopia, particularly with smartphone and tablet use [ 22 ].

Table 14 presents the reports related to this topic and their major content ( Table 14 ).

Social media and sight.

4.16. Social Media and Headache

There are increased complaints of headaches related to staring at a screen for too long [ 62 , 73 , 81 ]. Reports dealing with social media and headache are listed in Table 15 ( Table 15 ).

Social Media and headache.

Headache is actually the most common neurologic disorder in the population, children and adolescents included [ 81 ]. It may negatively impact on children and adolescents’ well-being, leading to stress, tiredness, anxiety, and bad mood. Time of usage of media device has been directly connected to headache: in particular, adolescents using more than 3 h a screen have a significantly higher risk of headache compared with those using a device for less than 2 h ( p < 0.001). Spending even 2–3 h with a computer significantly increases the chance of suffering a headache in comparison with those using a computer for less than 2 h ( p < 0.01). Excessive use of electronic devices is considered a risk factor, especially for the development of migraine-type headache ( p < 0.05) [ 81 ].

According to recent studies, headache and somatic symptoms have been found mostly in patients with problematic social media usage, compared with non-problematic peers. There is a consistent association between the problematic use of social media and adolescent psychosomatic health [ 62 , 73 ].

4.17. Social Media and Dental Caries

The association between use of internet and social media has been studied in literature [ 35 , 82 ]. Table 16 summarizes the main findings ( Table 16 ).

Social media and dental caries.

The association between use of internet social media to obtain oral health information and dental caries has been highlighted in Almoddahi’s report [ 82 ]. In detail, problematic internet use has been associated with unhealthy lifestyles, poor oral health behaviors, and more oral symptoms such as toothache, bleeding gums, and poor self-perceived oral health. Caries and junk food have been both connected to excessive internet use and ads [ 82 ]. Therefore, social media may be a risk factor for caries, poor oral health, and dental outcomes.

In line with Almoddahi, Radesky underlines that advertisements on social media promote intake of foods that contribute to dental caries, such as fast food and sugar beverages [ 35 ]. Nevertheless, evidence suggests that smartphone applications may improve health and oral health when internet-based health interventions are in place. Delivering oral health information via social media may increase tooth brushing and dental outcome [ 82 ].

5. Limitations

From the literature, it is not possible to decide whether social media use causes internalizing symptoms and problematic behaviors examined in this manuscript or whether children and adolescents suffering from depression, anxiety, or other psychological distress are more likely to spend time on social media. We can just state that there is an association between social media use and health problems, but that is not necessarily cause-effect. Moreover, the articles included are different, ranging from reviewers to clinical studies to letters and to editors, so that it may be difficult to accurately compare them. Third, as specified in the materials and methods, we excluded reports not in English letter and not published in PubMed.

Nevertheless, through our manuscript we contribute to the existing literature to highlighting the impact of social media use on adolescents, providing advices to pediatricians in everyday practice.

6. Conclusions

Social media is increasingly being used by children and adolescents, especially during COVID-19 pandemic and the health emergency. Although social media use demonstrated to be of utility, an excessive or non-correct use may be a risk factor for mental health, including depression, anxiety, and addiction.

Social media use may also correlate to a non-adequate nutrition with consumption of junk food marketing leading to weight gain, obesity, dental caries, and unhealthy eating behaviors. Associations have been found also with increasing physical problems due to sedentary lifestyle, obesity, and non-physiological postures. On the other hand, social media can cause problems with body image visualization and acceptance, especially in young adolescent girls with lower self-esteem, who may look for contents for losing weight rapidly, and this can help the extension of anorexia disorders.

Children and adolescents who use social media for many hours a day, are also at higher risk for behavioral problems, cyberbullying, online grooming, sleep difficulties, eye problems, (such as myopia, eye fatigue, dryness, blurry vision, irritation, burning sensation, conjunctival injection, ocular redness, and dry eye disease), and headache. Moreover, uncontrolled social media use, can lead to sexting, exposure to pornography, exposed to unwanted sexual material online, and early sexual activity. Social media users meet more online risks than their peers do, with an increased risk for those who are more digitally competence.

Public and medical awareness must rise over this topic and new prevention measures must be found, starting with health practitioners, caregivers, and websites/application developers. Families should be educating on the dangers and concerns of having children and adolescence online. Prerequisite to inform families how to handle social media is to educate those responsible for training, including health practitioners. In detail, pediatricians should be reminded to screen for media exposure (amount and content) during periodic check-up visits. They need to keep in mind a potential correlation of problematic social media use with depression, obesity and unhealthy eating behavior, psychological problems, sleep disorder, addiction, anxiety, sex related problem, behavioral problem, body image, physical inactivity, online grooming, sight compromising, headache, and dental caries. Pediatricians can also counsel parents to guide children to appropriate content by consulting ratings, reviews, plot descriptions, and by a previous screening of the material. They should inform parents about the potential risk of digital commerce to facilitate junk food, poor nutrition and sweetened aliments, facilitating overweight and obesity. On the contrary, a healthy diet, adequate physical activity and sleep need to be recommended. Pediatricians may also play a role in preventing cyberbullying by educating both adolescent and families on appropriate online behaviors and on privacy respect. They should also promote a face-to-face communication and to limit online communication by social media. Pediatricians may encourage parents to develop rules and strategies about media device and social media use at home as well as in every day’s life.

Funding Statement

This research received no external funding.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization: E.B.; methodology: S.B.; formal analysis G.S. and A.D.M.; Resources R.A. and R.R.; writing E.S. and A.V.D.S.; visualization: C.C.; editing: A.S.; supervision G.C. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Institutional Review Board Statement

Not applicable.

Informed Consent Statement

Data availability statement, conflicts of interest.

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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Surgeon General: Why I’m Calling for a Warning Label on Social Media Platforms

By Vivek H. Murthy

Dr. Murthy is the surgeon general.

One of the most important lessons I learned in medical school was that in an emergency, you don’t have the luxury to wait for perfect information. You assess the available facts, you use your best judgment, and you act quickly.

The mental health crisis among young people is an emergency — and social media has emerged as an important contributor. Adolescents who spend more than three hours a day on social media face double the risk of anxiety and depression symptoms, and the average daily use in this age group, as of the summer of 2023, was 4.8 hours . Additionally, nearly half of adolescents say social media makes them feel worse about their bodies.

It is time to require a surgeon general’s warning label on social media platforms, stating that social media is associated with significant mental health harms for adolescents. A surgeon general’s warning label, which requires congressional action, would regularly remind parents and adolescents that social media has not been proved safe. Evidence from tobacco studies show that warning labels can increase awareness and change behavior. When asked if a warning from the surgeon general would prompt them to limit or monitor their children’s social media use, 76 percent of people in one recent survey of Latino parents said yes.

To be clear, a warning label would not, on its own, make social media safe for young people. The advisory I issued a year ago about social media and young people’s mental health included specific recommendations for policymakers, platforms and the public to make social media safer for kids. Such measures, which already have strong bipartisan support, remain the priority.

Legislation from Congress should shield young people from online harassment, abuse and exploitation and from exposure to extreme violence and sexual content that too often appears in algorithm-driven feeds. The measures should prevent platforms from collecting sensitive data from children and should restrict the use of features like push notifications, autoplay and infinite scroll, which prey on developing brains and contribute to excessive use.

Additionally, companies must be required to share all of their data on health effects with independent scientists and the public — currently they do not — and allow independent safety audits. While the platforms claim they are making their products safer, Americans need more than words. We need proof.

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Colorado Approved Social Media Warnings Days Before Surgeon General's Essay

Colorado is one step ahead of federal leaders at addressing youth social media use On Monday, June 17, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy urged Congress to require warning labels on social media platforms in aopinion essay. Likening it to warning labels on tobacco products, Murthy argued that parents and adolescents need to be informed of the negative mental health impacts of using platforms like Instagram, TikTok and X.But Colorado beat Murthy to the punch. His essay comes eleven days after Governor Jared Polis signed a first-of-its-kind law requiring social media...

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