The Psychological Dangers of Social Media

WALTER, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US. ON FRIDAY, PRESS'S TOP COURT BLOCKED A BILL THAT WOULD HAVE MADE FRANCE THE FIRST EUROPEAN NATION TO BAN SOCIAL MEDIA ACCESS FOR ANYONE UNDER THE AGE OF 15. FRENCH PRESIDENT EMMANUEL MACRON IS ORDERING A RE DRAFT OF THE LEGISLATION AND HE FOULS TO PASS THE NEW LAWS BEFORE HIS TERM ENDS NEXT YEAR. WELL, THIS IS THE LATEST CASE OF A COUNTRY PASSING RESTRICTIONS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA USE FOR CHILDREN AND TEENS. LAST DECEMBER, AUSTRALIA BECAME THE FIRST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD TO PROHIBIT ANYONE UNDER 16 FROM USING FACEBOOK TIKTOK AND SNAPCHAT PRIMARY CONCERN HAS BEEN THE POLL THAT SOCIAL MEDIA CAN TAKE ON DEVELOPING MINDS AND ITS CONTRIBUTION TO SOME PSYCHOLOGICAL ISSUES LIKE DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY. FOR MORE ON THE PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON CHILDREN. I'M JOINED BY DR CHRISTOPHER HUGHES PEDIATRIC BEHAVIORAL HEALTH EXPERT WITH LEE HEALTH AND DR NEWS. THANKS MUCH FOR TALKING WITH US. GOOD TO SEE YOU. >> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. >> YOU KNOW, A LOT OF FOLKS GET LOST AND DOOM SCROLLING, BUT WHAT KIND OF MENTAL HEALTH IMPACT DOES THAT SORT OF BEHAVIOR HAVE ON THE DEVELOPING? OF CHILDREN. >> SURE. YEAH. SO WHEN KIDS AND TEENS ARE INTERACTING ON SOCIAL MEDIA, THERE'S A COUPLE OF THINGS TO CONSIDER. ONE IS, YOU KNOW, THE TIME, HOW LONG ARE THEY SPENDING ON THERE AND THAT TYPE OF THING? THEY'RE LOOKING AT THE TYPE OF CONTENT THEY'RE LOOKING AT. AND ALSO JUST THE JUST THE OVERALL INTERACTION THEY'RE HAVING WITH OTHERS ON THERE. AND WHAT WE DEFINITELY KNOW FROM THE RESEARCH THAT WE'VE BEEN SEEING COME OUT HERE RECENTLY IS, YOU KNOW, THE BIG ONES ARE DEFINITELY CONCERNS WITH DEPRESSION. OUR CONCERNS WITH ANXIETY, OUR CONCERNS MORE SPECIFICALLY WITH BODY IMAGE ISSUES OFTENTIMES SEEN AND GIRLS, ESPECIALLY AND THEN WE'LL ALSO EVEN JUST SEE THINGS LIKE MORE LIKELY TO ENGAGE IN RISKY BEHAVIORS. WE DEFINITELY SEE KIDS AND TEENS WHO ARE ALREADY PRONE TO TAKING RISKS, BEING ENCOURAGED TO SOMETIMES ENGAGE IN. MORE RISK-TAKING BEHAVIORS. AND ALSO EVEN CHANGES AND ATTENTION AND FOCUS. AND WE SEE THAT IT'S COOL TO WEAR TIME SPENT ON THINGS LIKE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS WHERE THEY'RE GETTING LOTS AND LOTS OF INPUTS FROM THE LIKES AND THE NOTIFICATIONS AND THE NEW POSTS FROM PEOPLE AND THEN THE NOVELTY THERE SEEN CONSTANTLY THROUGHOUT THAT INTERACTION WITH SOCIAL MEDIA. ALSO, ALL OF THAT CAN AFFECT ATTENTION AND FOCUS IN SCHOOL AS WELL. THOSE ARE I WOULD SAY THE MEAN PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACTS. WE WOULD BE CONCERNED ABOUT IN OUR KIDS AND TEENS RIGHT NOW. YEAH. >> SOME HEALTH EXPERTS HAVE COMPARED SOCIAL MEDIA USE TO ADDICTION, NICOTINE AND ALCOHOL ADDICTION. IS THAT A LITTLE OVER THE TOP OR IS IT RAIL OF THE DUBAI? >> YEAH. SO I'VE I'VE HEARD THIS THIS METAPHOR THIS ANALOGY. AND YES, THERE IS SOME TRUTH TO IT. THE WAY THAT RESEARCH IS SHOWING US ABOUT HOW KIDS ARE AFFECTED BY BY SOCIAL MEDIA AND EVEN BY GAMING AS WELL. WHEN YOU WHEN YOU INTERACT WITH SOMETHING LIKE SOCIAL MEDIA, YOU'RE GETTING A LITTLE HITS OF WHAT IS CALLED DOPAMINE. IT'S A IT'S A FEEL-GOOD CHEMICAL IN OUR BRAIN AND IT COMES ABOUT AND IT GIVES US A VERY SENSITIVE FORWARD SENSE OF MOTIVATION. AND IT KEEPS US WANTING TO COME BACK FOR MORE. AND SO, YES, IT CAN CREATE THIS ADDICTIVE QUALITY TO WANTING MORE AND MORE IN SPENDING MORE AND MORE TIME SIMILAR TO HOW YOU WOULD SEE IN A PERSON IS ADDICTED TO A SUBSTANCE. YOU KNOW. >> ARE THERE ARE OTHER HEALTH ISSUES THAT COULD STEM FROM OVERUSE OF SOCIAL MEDIA BY CHILDREN. >> YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. DEFINITELY. A CONCERN WITH KIDS AND TEENS. AS I MENTIONED BEFORE, THEY THEY ARE STILL DEVELOPING WHEN IT COMES TO THINGS LIKE THEIR EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING, THEIR ABILITY TO KNOW HOW TO INHIBIT OR STOP THEMSELVES FROM DOING SOMETHING TO MODERATE THEIR USE OF THINGS. KIDS JUST NATURALLY ARE NOT GREAT AT THAT YET. AND SO ADULTS ARE IMPORTANT IN HELPING THAT HAPPEN. BUT SO WHEN KIDS ARE OVERLY USING THINGS LIKE SOCIAL MEDIA, ESPECIALLY INTO THE EVENING, IT IS CUTTING INTO THEIR ABILITY TO GO TO SLEEP AND GET QUALITY SLEEP KIDS WHO ARE STAYING UP LATE INTO THE NIGHT ARE NOT GETTING QUALITY SLEEP, WHICH IS THEN LEADING TO MORE STRESS RESPONSE IN THEIR BRAIN. AND WHEN WE HAVE THAT OVERLY TIRED FEELING IN OUR BRAIN AND THAT STARTS WITH SPAWNS HAPPENS, IT CAN CREATE STRESS THE CONCRETE INFORMATION AND IT CAN LEAD TO HIGHER RISK OF THINGS LIKE DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY. I CAN DEFINITELY TO CONCERNS WITH PHYSICAL >> ELEMENTS AS WELL. WHAT WOULD TELL A PARENT OR A CAREGIVER? >> THAT THIS CHILD IS GETTING TO INVOLVE A SOCIAL MEDIA. ONE OF THE SIGNS. >> YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. SO IF YOU'RE SEEING A DRAMATIC INCREASE OVER TIME OF SPENDING MORE TIME AND MORE TIME ON SOCIAL MEDIA BACK IN. DEFINITELY BE OF CONCERN IF IT WAS AT A CERTAIN LEVEL AND NOW IT'S STARTING TO CLIMB UP. IF THEY ARE DOING THINGS LIKE PURPOSEFULLY LYING OR DECEIVING OR SNEAKING ACCESS THAT'S DEFINITELY SIGN OF A CONCERN. IF THEY ARE STARTING TO SEE DECREASES IN THINGS LIKE SCHOOL PERFORMANCE OR IF IT'S A TEAM HAS A JOB WHEN IT'S AFFECTING THEIR DAY-TO-DAY FUNCTIONING, THEIR LIVES, THEIR ABILITY TO SUCCEED AT SCHOOL OR WORK. THINGS OF THAT SORT ARE DEFINITELY SOME BIG INDICATORS TO 1, 4, >> ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. GREAT POINTS. START OR CHRISTOPHER HUGHES FROM LEE HEALTH. THANKS SO MUCH FOR