Danger zone for our children

PRESSURE groups have in recent times accused social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok of harmful effect on children, including shortened attention spans, promoting negative body images and making them vulnerable to online bullies and predators.

Studies have shown a relationship between excessive social media use and poor sleep quality, sleep difficulties and depression among youth. Those aged 10 to 19 are at particularly vulnerable stages of brain development, when risk-taking behaviours reach their peak.

Social media plays an important role in the lives of many tweens and teens. A survey last year showed that 35% of 13- to 17-year-olds reported using social media sites such as YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook “almost constantly” in 2022. This number will surely rise in 2024.

And while many social media platforms set a minimum age of 13 to sign up, 38% of kids between the ages of eight and 12 say they have used social media.

All this media use can influence young people in a variety of ways. And with a reported rise in depression and anxiety among teens, you may wonder how social media may impact your child’s mental health.

An op-ed in The New York Times this week caught my eye. The US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy called for a warning label to be added to social media apps as a reminder that those platforms have caused harm to young people, especially adolescents.

The Surgeon General, which is equivalent to our Health Minister, wrote that a warning label alone will not make social media safe for young people but that it can increase awareness and change behaviour as shown in evidence from tobacco studies.

“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,” Murthy wrote on Monday.

The op-ed shows the gravity of the situation. But this health warning cannot be implemented overnight because the US Congress would need to pass legislation requiring such a warning label.

There are already numerous reports and research papers on the negative impact on social media usage on young adults and teenagers. The connection to depression and anxiety and a false sense of reality is astounding.

If the US can consider warning labels from a healthcare perspective, it is time Malaysian policymakers take a stronger stand over the impact of social media on our young.

Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, our health minister is a seasoned policymaker and of course a proven healthcare expert.

I look forward to Dzulkefly tabling new policies in Parliament before the end of this parliamentary session to start the ball rolling in terms of more affirmative action to curtail the negative impact of social media on Malaysians below the age of 18.

It is no secret that “Big Tech” has immense clout in this country and will be able to lobby policymakers and key stakeholders within the value chain to try to dissuade legislation from being implemented.

Dzulkefly and the government must fight this. The failure last year to push the Generational End Game (GEG) bill in Parliament is a harsh reminder of the shadowy nexus of big business and government entities.

The GEG Bill, which aims to ban smoking to anyone born from 2007 onwards, was seen as a gamechanger, potentially heralding the first generation of Malaysians who cannot legally smoke a cigarette, and hopefully reduce vape and cigarette usage amongst the young.

But even though “Big Tobacco” may have scuttled this Bill, the authorities should do everything in their power to ensure that legislation to warn and limit exposure to social media is enacted.

Warning labels on social media platforms will not see significant change happen overnight, but they can increase awareness and in the long run change behaviour in the young.

And for this to happen, parents need to get actively involved. Government legislation aside, it is appalling that many parents are abdicating their role as guardians or worse are blase about their children using social media.

Understanding potential connections between social media and mental health can help you guide your kids toward healthy social media habits.

For example, image editing applications and filters popular on social media have a negative impact on children’s body image – or self-esteem.

We know that social media can affect everything from purchasing choices to perception of beauty, and unfortunately children, especially those under 18, are the most vulnerable to unrealistic body image expectations set by these platforms.

But instead of just limiting their children’s social media exposure, parents can take an active role in their social media engagement, to report concerns and seek help when they need it.

Banning social media completely may not be the answer to improving young people’s online safety and preserving their mental health, but warning labels on platforms coupled with increased parental involvement can equip them with important skills to help them navigate the digital world.