Unchecked social media use is fueling a youth mental health crisis, physicians say, but the Texas Legislature can help by reining in data mining and addictive platform design.
In written testimony submitted Aug. 20 to the House Public Health Committee, the Texas Medical Association and the Texas Pediatric Society (TPS) laid out evidence linking heavy social media use to declines in youth mental health, cognitive development, and behavioral well-being.
“TMA and TPS advocate for the continued development of policies that promote healthy technology use, restrict the data mining of minors’ information, and hold social media companies accountable for their platforms’ addictive design,” the two organizations wrote to lawmakers.
Research suggests children and adolescents who spend more than three hours per day on social media face twice the risk of depression and anxiety. Teenagers already report spending an average of 3.5 hours a day on social media, per the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Medicine also cites research indicating that increased social media use during early adolescence (ages 9 to 13) leads to declining performance in language and memory-related skills. Additionally, kids ages 12 and 13 who check social media more than 15 times per day show brain development patterns that could affect their ability to cope with stress and handle performance feedback.
Further, TMA and TPS argue that using personal data to tailor advertising to youth is developmentally inappropriate. Young users may lack critical thinking skills and impulse control needed to recognize and respond to targeted algorithms.
Texas lawmakers can lead the nation, the testimony states, by restricting companies from collecting personal information from young users without parental consent, banning targeted advertising to children and teens, and providing tools to help parents protect kids online.
“Considering the national youth mental health crisis, it is important to act swiftly and decisively to protect children and adolescents from harm,” TMA and TPS wrote.
The legislature, specifically its House Committee on Public Health, is also charged with reviewing data on communicable diseases and emerging public health threats. In an additional piece of testimony, TMA urged the committee to reinforce evidence-based preventive medicine and safeguard the tools that protect Texans from severe, life-threatening communicable diseases.
Medicine asks the committee to:
- Protect baseline school immunization standards. Minimum immunization requirements for entry into school and child care facilities are vital for preventing community disease outbreaks and providing a safe learning environment.
- Support evidence-based clinical guidance. Texas should safeguard the trusted patient-physician relationship and ensure evidence-based standards of care so patients can receive high-quality, personalized care.
- Strengthen ImmTrac2 infrastructure. Continued state support and administrative efforts within the state’s immunization tracking system enable physician practices to maintain accurate records and improve care.
- Address rising vaccine exemption rates to prevent outbreaks. Strengthening public education, meeting vaccine hesitancy with evidence-based communication, and safeguarding routine immunization access are critical to protecting Texas children.
To read more about how TMA is advocating with state lawmakers, visit the association’s Legislative Testimony page online.