In June 2024, United States Surgeon General Dr. Vivek H. Murthy issued a social media health warning calling for a warning label to be required for social media platforms. Yes, a warning label — just like those familiar ones on cigarettes and tobacco products. Dr. Murthy explained the importance of protecting adolescents and teens from the possible harms of social media, which has a correlation with significant mental health struggles.

While the social media warning is just a proposal and an implementation timeline hasn’t been set, it’s important to be aware. As Dr. Murthy shared in the New York Times, “There is no seatbelt for parents to click, no helmet to snap in place, no assurance that trusted experts have investigated and ensured that these platforms are safe for our kids.”

Here’s what you need to know about Dr. Murthy’s warning, and what parents can do to help children and teens navigate social media and moderate screen time. 

Why Social Media Can Be Harmful for Mental Health

Social media offers many upsides, like opportunities for creative self-expression and staying connected to friends and family. However, there are many risks involved with social media that can be harmful to the mental health of young people. Online, adolescents and teens can encounter:

• Cyberbullying
• Harassment
• Privacy violations
• Violence
• Sexual content
• Other harmful information or inappropriate content for their age and stage of development

Social media and mental health are inextricably linked. Time spent on social media is correlated with higher rates of mental health difficulties and crises in adolescents. As Dr. Murthy explained, “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.”

Given that teens’ brains aren’t yet fully developed, they don’t always have the ability to make mature decisions about how they spend their time online. Until the prefrontal cortex is fully developed, it’s harder for teens to self-regulate and make the wise decisions needed for smart social media use. 

Loneliness and Isolation

While social media exists as a means of connection, it can lead to feelings of isolation. “Being lonely is not about how many people you have around you,” Dr. Murthy said in an interview on the Today Show. “It’s about the quality of those connections.” When a teen is missing deep relationships and genuine friendships, social media can exacerbate their feelings of loneliness. It can leave the young person with the impression that they’re merely on the outside looking in. 

Teens Recognize the Problem

Dr. Murthy also noted that this isn’t only a concern parents and educators are raising. Teens themselves are recognizing the dangers of social media as well, and sometimes feel powerless to do anything about it.

In a recent meeting with students to discuss mental health and loneliness, Dr. Murthy shared that the discussion inevitably turned to social media. Students shared several struggles they face online, including:

• Comparing themselves to others
• Reduced self-esteem
• Feeling addicted to social media and unable to limit their exposure
• And struggling to have real conversations in hostile online environments

“We have the expertise, resources and tools to make social media safe for our kids,” Dr. Murthy said. “Now is the time to summon the will to act.”

Navigating Social Media & Screen Time

Our devices are now fixtures in our lives. At their best, they help us manage our daily lives, learn, stay in touch and form new connections. But as we’ve covered, social media and screen time can have profoundly negative effects, especially when boundaries aren’t established. While policymakers and community leaders are striving to make the internet a safer place for children, there are also steps parents and caregivers can take to protect their child’s mental health.

Be Mindful of Screen Time

Perhaps the most important limit caregivers can set is time. It’s so easy to lose track of time and get drawn into social media for much longer than you intended. Content is designed to be distracting and addicting. While this is challenging, it helps to have a plan in place.

Kimberly O’Connor-Soule, Senior Inpatient Officer

Kimberly O’Connor-Soule, Camber’s Senior Inpatient Officer, advises parents to decide on a daily limitation and use apps to help enforce these boundaries. Setting apps to time out on their own might be easier than having a daily discussion about it.

It’s also crucial for parents to take a look at their own device usage. “Try modeling healthy engagement and boundaries with social media and use of technology,” says Kimberly. When parents are regularly engrossed in their phones it signals to their child that there’s not much around them that’s worth paying attention to. If parents actively engage in their daily activities, in-person connections and hobbies children will pick up on this and are then more likely to take an interest in things beyond their screens.

“The best way I have found to limit time spent on devices or social media is to be present with teens,” shares Kimberly. “When having meals, watching shows, or spending time together, encourage those moments to be device or tech-free times.”

Emotional Regulation

While setting out to limit screen time, it’s so important to look at what a child is getting out of the time they spend online. Does the child have an emotional need that they’re over-relying on their devices to fill? Often kids are turning to long bouts of screen time to help them regulate their emotions. For kids and teens, coping with big feelings is new and can be overwhelming. Many children don’t have the tools to self-regulate. So, it’s understandable that many of them use screens as their primary resource to manage their emotions.

It’s not just a matter of decreasing screen time, it’s also about building their emotional regulation tool kit. It’s normal to occasionally scroll to relax. However, children also need to develop additional skills to move through big emotions.

We recommend getting started by creating an emotion regulation plan with your child. Kimberly also advises parents teach mindfulness techniques to their kids. “Deep breathing, where you repeatedly inhale slowly for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, and exhale for 4 seconds, can be incredibly calming,” Kimberly explains. Experimenting with different approaches can help your child discover the strategies that work for them. This will empower them to feel confident in their ability to cope with their emotions and be more comfortable with reduced screen time.

Connections

Just like kids might be filling their need for regulation with scrolling, they might also be trying to fill their need for connection. It’s helpful for parents to consider how they might bring some diversity to the way their child is connecting with others. Messaging, playing video games, and Facetiming are all great ways for kids to maintain and nurture their friendships. But it’s also important that they feel strongly connected to their families and have a balance of in-person and online socialization.

“We all need connection, children especially. Try to find some in-person activities that could foster that connection,” advises Kimberly. “Anything from walks, to playing board or card games, to sports offers time to talk and engage with your child.” Finding ways to help children spend time with their friends and make new connections is very valuable to wellbeing and growing interpersonal skills. Encourage them to explore activities and clubs.

Self-Esteem

While it’s nearly impossible to keep teens from looking to their peers for validation, it’s crucial that they’re not only looking to their friends or classmates. Roots for good self-esteem start at home. If a child feels like their family truly appreciates them for who they are, it will be much easier for them to develop a solid sense of self-worth. Causing them to be less likely to look to social media as their primary source to form their sense of self. Read more about how parents and caregivers can boost their child’s self-esteem.

Conversations around social media literacy can also help teens combat comparison culture. Teens need to understand that social media is a highlight reel, not the full picture. Open communication about what your child encounters online can help them learn to think more critically about the content they’re consuming.

Parents and caregivers can find more recommendations about social media in The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory. They also share action steps that children and adolescents can take, like asking for help, protecting their privacy and supporting friends who might be struggling. Get more smart screen time guidance.

Signs Your Child May Need Professional Support

It can be difficult to realize your child or adolescent needs professional mental health support before it becomes an emergency situation. But doing so can help your child get the help they need, build better habits around social media and protect their mental wellbeing. 

How can you tell the difference between the normal teen ups and downs and the need for help? Here are some signs your child or teen may be experiencing mental health challenges and would benefit from professional help:

• Struggling to complete daily tasks (getting dressed, bathing, brushing teeth, eating)
• Communicating thoughts of self-harm or suicide
• Withdrawing from or isolating from friends, family and activities they previously enjoyed
• Excessive feelings of anxiety, worry, fear or panic 
• Impulsive or reckless behaviors that are aggressive or out of character
• Diminished sense of self-esteem or self-worth
• Shifts in everyday patterns, like their typical moods, sleeping routines or eating habits
• Significant increase in time spent on devices (phone, computer, tablet, gaming or TV)

If your child or adolescent is exhibiting one or more of the above signs, start the conversation about how they’re doing. Then connect them with a trusted adult, doctor or mental health professional who can help them start the conversation.

When crisis is imminent…

• In the event that the person is an immediate danger to themselves or someone else, call 911 quickly and let them know you are with someone experiencing a mental health crisis. 
• The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available 24/7 by calling or texting 988. Hotline staff will be able to provide advice and help with crisis services. Just like we call 911 for immediate assistance with fire, health or safety emergencies, 988 is a resource for immediate mental health emergencies, people at risk of suicide and other mental health crises.
• If you can, reach out to the individual’s therapist, doctor, or psychiatrist if they have one. Additionally, you can go to the local mental health center or emergency room to receive an assessment. This can be a community mental health center, emergency room or psychiatric treatment facility.

How KVC Can Help

At KVC, we want every child and adult to be safe and connected to a strong family and a healthy community. With mental health services and children’s mental health hospitals throughout Kansas, Missouri, Kentucky, Nebraska and West Virginia, we are working hard every day to increase access to mental health care for adults and adolescents alike. Learn more about the mental health services KVC offers, all designed to strengthen children and families.