Surgeon General wants to add warning label on social media

U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy wants to implement a warning label for social media use to prevent young children from using the apps.

The warning label will be similar to a cigarette warning label and will represent the same purposes but cover the harms of social media use.

Dr. Swapna Reddy, Clinical Associate Professor at the College of Health Solutions at ASU, joined “Arizona Horizon” to discuss the new label on social media and how children will be affected.

“Mental health is a really important public health issue and it’s something we need to treat, like all health issues,” said Reddy. “95% of adolescents are on some kind of social media… We want to make sure the product is safe, we have research and data on the safety, we probably have some regulation and some guidance for parents and teachers to guide through it.”

Various studies show social media use may lead to higher rates of anxiety and depression. Too much time on social media is posing a threat to young children’s mental health, and research shows kids spend more than four hours a day on social media platforms.

Due to social media and it’s easy accessibility being a fairly new issue, there isn’t complete conclusive research on the affect to young developing brains.