Children in danger online
Social media declared ‘public health risk’
Social media has been labelled a public health risk with children and young people exposed to damaging images and content they don’t have the developmental maturity to cope with.
Acting Chief Health Officer Associate Professor Catherine Mcdougall has told the Townsville Bulletin’s Future Townsville event that social media access for children is causing great distress for young people, with it leading to a rise in hospital admissions.
“The challenge is that social media’s work on a l g o - r i t h m s and they k e e p f e e d i n g kids images and content that they often don’t have the developmental maturity to manage and we believe that this is likely associated with poorer mental health and wellbeing outcomes,” she said.
“We are seeing increased admissions into the hospital for self harm, particularly young girls aged 10 to 14. One of the potential causes around this could be attributed to unrestricted social media.”
While Queensland Health is working on new programs to combat the rising issue, Professor Mcdougall said a key focus was empowering parents to spot the signs of unsafe social media use.
“It’s about empowering parents with the skills and resources to introduce social media in a safe way,” she said.
Townsville Hospital and Health Service Chief Executive Kieran Keyes said the concern of the “insidious aspects” of social media had risen greatly over the past years.
“Much the same as what happened with smoking in the 1960s, it’s here now [with social media] just without an evidence base,” he said. “We will start to see an evidence base grow about the harms associated with social media and that’s not to say it’s all bad.”
“When I grew up I was able to remove myself from people who were giving me a hard time, but for young people today it’s all pervasive.”
Mr Keyes said the effects that social media algorithms have on health are only just now being considered, with algorithms a key concern in showing young children unsafe content and making them addicted to their phones and ipads.
“The algorithm is just as addictive as any other substance like nicotine, alcohol or potentially worse,” he said.
“We have to be courageous enough to have those conversations not only with ourselves and our own social media but also with young people.
“Unless you manage access and set limits and have conversations with and educate young people, they may not be able to see a way out and that is potentially tragic.”