WHO sees increase in ‘problematic’ social media use among European teens

The World Health Organization warned on Wednesday of a “sharp increase in problematic social media use” among European teenagers, which it said is damaging their mental health.

The European branch of the health agency also warned that more than one in 10 adolescents are “at risk of problem gaming”.

According to WHO Europe, problem drug use is defined as young people exhibiting “addiction-like symptoms”.

“It is clear that we need immediate and sustained action to help adolescents reverse the potentially harmful use of social media, which has been shown to lead to depression, bullying, anxiety and poor school performance,” said Hans Kluge, WHO Director for Europe, in a statement.

Symptoms that resemble addiction include the inability to control use, neglecting other activities in favor of social media, or seeing negative consequences in daily life as a result of excessive use.

The WHO European Region comprises 53 countries and also includes Central Asia.

According to the health agency, 11 percent of adolescents (13 percent of girls and 9 percent of boys) showed signs of problematic social network use in 2022, compared to only 7 percent four years earlier.

Data were cited from 280,000 people aged 11, 13 and 15 years from 44 countries in Europe, Central Asia and Canada.

The phenomenon was most common among Romanian teenagers aged 13 to 15, with 28 percent experiencing it. It was least common among Dutch teenagers, with only three percent of them experiencing such symptoms.

According to the WHO, one third of adolescents play online games daily, 22 percent of whom play them for at least four hours.

Twelve percent of the entire cohort were also at risk of problem gambling. Young boys were the most affected: 16 percent compared to seven percent of girls.

“It is critical that we take measures to protect young people, so they can navigate the digital landscape safely and make informed choices about their online activities,” said Natasha Azzopardi-Muscat, Director of Country Health Policies and Systems at WHO Europe, in a statement.

At the same time, the UN agency stressed that social media also has benefits.

Among young people, 36 percent say they are in constant digital contact with their friends, and 44 percent of 15-year-old girls do.

“Young people should control social media, not social media should control them,” Azzopardi-Muscat said.

WHO Europe called on national authorities to invest in embedding digital literacy in schools, improving mental health services and training teachers and health professionals, and to maintain accountability of social media providers.

© 2024 AFP