NORFOLK, Va. — May is Mental Health Awareness Month, which presents an opportunity for parents to talk to their kids about screen time.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, there are a number of United States teens who have reported mental health challenges, and some lawmakers in the country are relating it to online activity and social media.
According to the American Psychological Association, too much time online can cause you more than just a headache.
Social media may exploit the brain development of young children, according to Sam Fabian, a community outreach manager and a parent educator at the Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters.
"The pre-frontal cortex right in front of the brain is sometimes tired during the preteen and teen years which means they can't discern from what's a good decision what's not," said Fabian.
Part of the reason lawmakers are supporting the Protecting Kids on Social Media Act is because of statistics that the CDC released earlier this year, describing mental health challenges in teens.
Data show three out of 5 teen girls in the U.S. felt persistently sad or hopeless in 2021, which doubled in the number of boys. That's a 60% increase and the highest reported in the past ten years.
Fabian says the high number for teen girls could be related to online activity.
"Young girls get on these apps, and the filters and all affect them, and the competition of how they look and feel and talking about other girls," explained Fabian.
Fabian said there are signs to look out for, like personality changes, disinterest in hobbies and activities, and a disinterest in eating, which sounds like puberty but could also be something else.
"Teenagers, of course, they are going to be quirky they're going to have mood swings and that's all normal but when it's becoming a pattern for when we are feeling uncomfortable then it's time to talk," said Fabian.
Here are some words of advice for parents—be patient. Fabian encourages a conversation with your children early about online trust.
"Don't start having this conversation after you give them a phone or access to the computer unsupervised there are some great sites for social media plans to sit down with your child and go through social media plans," said Fabian.
Some sights include healthychildren.Org orapa.org for starters. More resources can be found by clicking the link here.
