Dr. Vivek H. Murthy, the Surgeon General of the USA, recently announced that he would call for a warning label on social media platforms advising parents that their use (excessive) can potentially harm adolescents’ mental health.

He also called on the tech outlets to initiate changes: to share the internal data on the health impact of their products; to allow independent safety audits and to restrict features like push notifications, autoplay and infinite scroll which can ‘prey on developing brains and contribute to excessive use’.

According to a Gallup survey of more than 1500 US adolescents released last fall, they spend an average of 4.8 hours a day on social media platforms such as YouTube, TikTok and Instagram. Several studies conducted on the OECD countries confirm that children and adolescents’ mental health is severely affected by time spent onscreen.

Symptoms of depression and anxiety have been attributed to excessive screen time for adolescents and the young segment of the population is particularly vulnerable to these mental health disorders than adults. The OECD Directorate for Education and Skills in a 2024 report entitled Students, Digital Devices and Success reveals that there are four main risk categories for children in digital environment: content, contact, and consumer and conduct risks.

Social media has its obvious opportunity costs for the children and adolescents. Internet stands to steal the time that could otherwise by utilised in a constructive manner: such as reading books or playing outdoor games. At the growing stage, the children require physical activities for a sound health.

The WHO recommends a minimum of one-hour physical exercise each day for every child, which remains unmet due to onslaught of the mobile phones and electronic device. The situation is more precarious in the urban areas than in the rural areas. Several factors influence the physical activity: availability of safe space and equipment, traffic congestion, lack of adequate parenting and motivation, dearth of green spaces in the urban areas, school curricula and extra-curricular activities which require the children to pay more attention, procrastination with the mobile device and internet.

A restriction or ban on the social media or internet at School may not be the best of the options given the vista of opportunities for learning and creativity. The upcoming generation must know how to embrace the fruits of new technologies rather than shy away from that.

Technology companies put forward the arguments that the science on the adverse effects of social media is yet to be settled. During the extra-ordinary time of the pandemic; remote learning, digital devices, and instructional apps became an integral part of the teaching experience, offering tailor made and adaptive approaches to education. Digitisation can help bridge the gap between the technically and scientifically most advanced classrooms and the ones painfully lagging behind over the decades or centuries. A balanced use of social media can lead to the balanced flow of information and help fight the monopoly of any information outlet.

At the same time the downside of distraction and the negative impacts on mental health must not be overlooked. Many countries in the meantime have implemented bans on mobile phones at classrooms so that there is an unhampered face to face human interaction. Parents are also recommended to offer quality time to their children beyond the school hours and weekends and vacations.

Parents these days, particularly in the post-COVID period work from home in increasing numbers. There is a possibility that children are left unattended or just with a gadget. Consequently, they turn to social media as the only available companion. Parents need to be particularly mindful about the parenting needs of their children.

Tele density is nearing 100% in Bangladesh. Over 11 crore mobile subscribers now use internet which is both a positive development and carries a strong message for our policymakers and social workers. Adolescents account for over 20% of Bangladesh’s total population. Again, 40% of Bangladesh’s 18.5 million adolescents use social media. Understanding their online behaviour is most urgent to devise the right intervention so that there is a smooth transition of these folks into the country’s job market. In that journey internet affiliation can be at the same time a boon or curse depending on how we approach it.

Finally, in this age of digital technology we cannot expect our children to backtrack entirely from social media. What is alarming is its unsustainable and unbalanced use without appropriate support and supervision from the superiors. A number of US legislators have been contemplating to move a bill in the Congress restricting its use; if not that at least to compulsorily circulate the adverse effects of social media’s overuse in public as a warning. At the global level, there is the need for a consensus among tech leaders, health regulators, politicians and the teaching community on ‘healthy use of social media’ not merely for children and adolescents but even the relatively senior segment of the society who would guide the juniors.
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The Writer is the Consul General of Bangladesh in Milan, Italy