US top health official sounds alarm on child social media use

A teenager holds her phone as she sits for a portrait near her home in Illinois, on March 24, 2023. The US Surgeon General is warning there is not enough evidence to show that social media is safe for young people – and is calling on tech companies, parents and caregivers to take ‘immediate action to protect kids now’. — AP

WASHINGTON: The top US health official on May 23 issued a stark warning to parents, tech companies and regulators, saying the evidence is growing that social media use may seriously harm children.

In a lengthy advisory, US surgeon general Vivek Murthy said that while not without benefits, “there are ample indicators that social media can also have a profound risk of harm to the mental health and well-being of children and adolescents.”