Surgeon General calls for warning labels on social media

Surgeon General calls for warning labels on social media

What you probably already know: Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy on Monday called on Congress to require social media companies issue warnings that the technology could harm teenagers’ mental health. The idea is to make sure parents are aware of the risks before they allow their children to use these products.

Why? Eating disorders and suicide are on the rise across the globe, and the issue really started to take off after social media became more prevalent. Among girls, 30% said they had seriously considered suicide, a jump of 60% in a decade and double the rate of boys. A recent study showed that teens who spend more than three hours a day on social media have higher odds of experiencing mental health problems.

What it means: The warning labels would be similar to those present on tobacco and alcohol, showing just how seriously the government is starting to get when it comes to protecting kids online. The idea, Dr. Murthy told the New York Times, is that the warning label would appear regularly on screens when people use social media sites. There’s likely to be a major push by these powerful tech companies to stop this initiative from gaining steam.

What happens now? Dr. Murthy said this stems from tech companies’ lack of willingness to share data on health effects of their products, and thus, must be regulated and forced to allow independent safety audits. He said these companies have had 20 years to fix the problem on their own and have failed to do so.

Takeaways: Here are a few quick points from Dr. Murthy’s op ed in the New York Times.

• The mental health crisis among teens is an emergency and action must be taken immediately.

• In surveys, parents have said that a warning label would prompt them to limit or more closely monitor their children’s social media usage.

• New measures need to protect children from violent and sexual content that is inappropriate, and protect them from the things that make social media addictive, like infinite scrolling and push notifications.

• Companies should not be allowed to collect sensitive data on children and must share any data collected that measures health effects with independent scientists and the public.

• Schools and parents should create “phone-free” experiences during class time and before bedtime and try to protect kids from the dangers inherent in use of these products. This is difficult and pits parents against “some of the best product engineers and most well-resourced companies in the world.”

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