Health. Young people suffering from depression and anxiety spend more time on social media

The virtual world is a refuge for young people during difficult times. In the UK, more than 3,000 children and adolescents participated in a study that found that depressed and anxious young people spend an average of 50 minutes more per day on social media than their peers.

The study analyzed the behavior of 11- to 19-year-olds from a 2017 National Health Service database. At least 16% of participants had at least one mental health disorder, and 8% had an "external" disorder, such as depression or anxiety.

The scientific article shows that depressed and anxious adolescents are more exposed to negative and anxiety-inducing discourse on digital platforms. This can have the effect of reinforcing psychological suffering by comparing themselves to others, or by being affected by the avalanche of negative comments that abound on the internet.

90% of 13-17 year olds use social media

This work, published in the journal Nature Human Behavior , is primarily a warning message for families, argues Anne Marie Albano, a professor of medical psychology at Columbia University. "If your child is vulnerable because of anxiety, a tendency toward depression, or a low mood, social media is something that really needs to be monitored closely," insists the researcher, who was not involved in the study.

This large-scale study, one of the first of its kind, should serve as a model for authorities, hopes Luisa Fassi, co-author of the study. "They can use this information to think about ways to intervene, for example by using techniques to help young people regulate their use of social media or make fewer social comparisons," explains the doctoral student at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge.

In 2023, a study by the National Institute of Youth and Popular Education highlighted that 90% of young people aged 13 to 17 were connected to social media in France. Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat are the most popular among this age group.