Social Media Adolescent Screening

Social media use starts during childhood and can play a significant role in the relationships and experiences that impact children and teens’ growth, development and mental health. Today, social media use is pervasive among adolescents, with 95% of teens having access to a smart phone and 46% of teens reporting that they are online “almost constantly, ” prompting significant concerns about the impact of social media use on adolescent mental and physical health.

Current guidelines stress the need for ongoing parental involvement and monitoring of adolescent social media use to mitigate potential mental health risks, with specific recommendations to avoid social media use during key developmental periods and before bedtime to prevent sleep disruption and other health issues.

Further, experts highlight the lack of comprehensive, longitudinal studies on the long-term effects of social media on youth, urging for more research to understand how extended use impacts adolescent development and well-being over time.

Recognizing the responsibilities of physicians and health professionals to the health and well-being of adolescents, the 2024 House of Delegates passed policy directing the WSMA to encourage physicians to use social media guidelines and resources as a part of routine health screenings and patient care. Use the guidelines on this page to inform your practice.

Social Media Use in Adolescence: Guidelines for Health Professionals

American Academy of Pediatrics

Center of Excellence on Social Media and Youth Mental Health

The Center provides a variety of educational and technical assistance opportunities to support clinicians, educators, parents, youth and others in encouraging healthy social media use:

Virtual interactive learning communities leveraging Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes), an online learning community modality that uses didactic presentations from multidisciplinary faculty experts, case-based peer learning discussions, and quality improvement methodologies to improve health outcomes.
Regularly scheduled webinars and follow-up office hours with expert clinicians.
Expert speakers for and presentations delivered by our co-medical directors, staff and center ambassadors.
A variety of tipsheets, educational case studies, and brief topical educational videos.
A question and answer portal: a two-way communication channel for questions about social media and mental well-being. Each submitted question has an evidence-based response from our expert team and users can search our library of previously submitted questions and responses.

To learn more, visit the center’s website at aap.org/socialmedia. Download a PDF flyer to help spread the word.

American Psychological Association

2023 Health Advisory on Social Media Use in Adolescence

2024 Report “The Science of How Social Media Affects Youth”

In 2023, a presidential panel of the American Psychological Association issued a health advisory on social media use in adolescence, noting that while these platforms can promote healthy socialization, their use should be preceded by training in social media literacy to ensure that youth have skills that will maximize the chances for balanced, safe and meaningful experiences.

The advisory included 10 recommendations for the use of social media by adolescents, including:

Tailor social media use, functionality and permissions to youths’ developmental capabilities; designs created for adults may not be appropriate for children.
For younger kids, adults should monitor social media use, including discussing and coaching around social media content. This should be balanced with youths’ appropriate needs for privacy. Autonomy may increase gradually as kids age and gain more digital literacy skills.
Minimize adolescents’ exposure to social media content that depicts illegal or psychologically maladaptive behavior, including content that instructs or encourages youth to engage in self-harm or high-risk behaviors or those that encourage eating-disordered behavior (such as restrictive eating, purging or excessive exercise).
Minimize adolescents’ exposure to online content that promotes discrimination, prejudice, hate or cyberbullying, especially directed toward groups targeted because of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion or disability status.
Monitor adolescents for signs of problematic social media use that can impair their ability to engage in daily roles and routines and may present risk for more serious psychological harms over time.
Limit social media use so as not to interfere with adolescents’ sleep or physical activity, as each is required for healthy brain and psychological development.
Limit adolescents’ use of social media for primarily beauty- or appearance-related content.

In 2024, the American Psychological Association followed its health advisory with a new report that looked at the science on the risks and opportunities social media present to young social media users: “Potential risks of content, features, and functions: The science of how social media affects youth.”

U.S. Surgeon General

2021 Advisory: Protecting Youth Mental Health.

This 2021 advisory from the U.S. Surgeon General offers recommendations for supporting the mental health of children, adolescents, and young adults. The advisory includes essential recommendations for the institutions that surround young people and shape their day-to-day lives—schools, community organizations, health care systems, technology companies, media, funders and foundations, employers, and government.

What health care professionals can do:

Recognize that the best treatment is prevention of mental health challenges. Implement trauma-informed care principles and other prevention strategies to improve care for all youth, especially those with a history of adversity.
Routinely screen children for mental health challenges and risk factors, including adverse childhood experiences.
Identify and address the mental health needs of parents, caregivers, and other family members.
Combine the efforts of clinical staff with those of trusted community partners and child-serving systems (e.g., child welfare, juvenile justice).
Build multidisciplinary teams to implement services that are tailored to the needs of children and their families.

Read the full advisory, “Protecting Youth Mental Health: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory, 2021.”