Innocent distraction, barrier-breaking social connector, public health threat—when it comes to social media use by kids, all labels may apply. But for many parents, building healthy social media habits for Southwest Florida families has become a growing concern. With teens spending an average of nearly five hours a day online, local families are searching for balanced, practical ways to guide digital behavior and protect mental health.
From YouTube to Tik Tok to Instagram to Snapchat (and a dose of Facebook, largely now the domain of us older folks), 95% of teens ages 13-17 report using social media – with more than a third doing so “almost constantly.”
With U.S. teens spending an average of nearly five hours a day on social media, concerns about the potential harm of such behavior have prompted public health officials to call for action.
That includes the call by some, including the previous U.S. Surgeon General, for public health warning labels on social media platforms, like those now required on cigarettes and tobacco products.
Attorneys general of 42 states and U.S. territories similarly asked Congress to mandate such labels, citing the prevalence of cyberbullying; online hate speech; increased anxiety, depression, and rates of suicidal thoughts among heavy users; and lower self-esteem and disrupted sleep.
Research supports these concerns. A 2019 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that adolescents who spend excessive time on social media are at a heightened risk for mental health problems.
At the same time, many teens struggle trying to reduce screen time – a dependency that underscores the need for interventions that can raise awareness and encourage healthier behaviors.
Plan a social media diet
Just as you might create weekly or monthly meal plans or family menus, planning a healthy social media diet should be a family affair.
The American Academy of Pediatrics offers a helpful online tool to help create a Family Media Plan at www.healthychildren.org/English/fmp/Pages/MediaPlan.
The plan is customizable, allowing families to select from priorities such as digital privacy and safety, creating screen-free times and zones, using media together (i.e., family movie nights), and kindness and empathy.
The family plan encourages participants to openly communicate about media, noting, “the more you discuss it as part of your daily routine – in the car, dinner table, or at a regular family meeting – the more natural it will become.” The plan offers eight tangible steps on how to do so, from “becoming more aware of how media and our emotions connect” to “learning how to better recognize ads on the Internet.”
Here are just some of the other suggestions generated by the tool:
Media balance
- Plan a screen-free activity to do together as a family every day.
- Track online activities and talk about which activities may be taking up too much time.
- Make a habit of turning off media that’s not being used by anyone.
- Have fewer apps on our devices.
Digital privacy and safety
- Set lock-screen reminders.
- Realize when we turn to media to dull our own emotions and find healthier ways to cope.
- Set and follow safety rules for who we chat with online.
- Conduct periodic device check-ups. When done with transparency and respect, device check-ups are not about invading privacy, they’re about creating an opportunity for trust and conversation.
Screen-free zones
- Keep meals screen free.
- Keep bedrooms screen free at night.
- No text (or email, web searches, live streaming, etc.) while driving.
- No devices on the way to and from school.
- Hold off on social media use until age 13 or older, with parent support.
Screen-free times
- Choose which days of the week are OK for screens and media.
- Have a homework-and-screens plan.
- Use only one screen at a time.
- Avoid screens before school.
- Plan one screen-free day each week.
- Silence phones by putting them on “do not disturb” during family time and playtime.
- Avoid screens during the hour before sleep.
When used responsibly, social media for children and teens – like for adults – can create a profound sense of connection with peers, from classmates to someone across the globe. It can expose users to new views and perspectives and supportive online communities that may be hard to form in real life. It’s also an incredibly potent tool that, in the wrong hands, can cause immense harm.
Time will tell if, like cigarettes, our social media platforms will carry public health warning labels. At home, there’s no need to wait. An adaptable, responsive Family Media Plan will help you and your loved ones better navigate the digital road ahead, one click at a time.