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KNOWLEDGE

psychologist at the Autism and Development Center, Navicent              To encourage healthy, balanced social media use, you can:
Health. “Addiction affects a significant aspect of life, such as      »» Create social media blackout zones and times. You can
relationships, academics or work. Very few people would actually
be considered to have social media addiction because they don’t          ban social media use at the dinner table, in the bedroom,
meet those criteria.”                                                    during family functions and after a certain time of night. For
                                                                         example, Dr. Johns prohibits his teenagers from using social
   Much more common is social media overuse, according to                media after 10 p.m.
Christy Peterson, MD, pediatrician at Beverly Knight Olson            »» Discourage over-sharing. Information posted online is
Children’s Hospital and Children’s Health Center, Navicent Health.       difficult—if not impossible—to delete. Counsel your children
That can have a variety of consequences for children’s mental            against sharing personal details or images they wouldn’t want
health.                                                                  others to know or see.
                                                                      »» Encourage your children to be selective about their online
   “Friends’ pictures and posts may make children feel inadequate        friends. They should only “friend” people they know.
or less worthy by comparison,” Dr. Peterson says. “They may not       »» Place a premium on privacy. Only you and your children’s
understand that people post only the best of themselves on social        friends should be able to see their social media accounts. Be sure
media. Children may experience fear of missing out, which is             they use privacy settings accordingly.
natural but can become overwhelming. Overuse may lead to anxiety      »» Promote kindness. Encourage your children to be positive and
and depression.”                                                         respectful in their interactions on social media.
                                                                      »» Use technology to your advantage. “If your internet provider or
   Too much time on social media can also expose children to             mobile carrier offers a service that allows you to keep tabs on
cyberbullying or inappropriate advertisements. They may be               the sites your children are visiting and how much time they’re
tempted to share images or information that shouldn’t be public.         spending on them, use it,” Dr. Peterson says. “I get a weekly
The effects of social media overuse aren’t all mental and emotional,     report for my family, and it’s always interesting to see the times
though—it can harm physical health, too, by disrupting sleep and         of peak internet use.”
cutting into time that could be spent being active.
                                                                      GROWN-UP PROBLEMS
   Dr. Johns says signs of social media overuse include:
»» Avoiding face-to-face contact with friends and family              Adults can struggle with social media overuse, too, and
»» Decreased physical activity                                        may experience many of the same health consequences as
»» Difficulty sleeping                                                young people, including poor sleep, anxiety and depression.
»» Rapid decline in school performance                                Modeling healthy social media and digital device use is an
»» Weight gain                                                        important step to protect your children, but they aren’t the
                                                                      only ones who benefit.
BOUNDARY MARKERS
                                                                         “You can’t tell your children to not use their smartphones at
Dr. Peterson encourages parents to be proactive about setting         the dinner table and then use yours,” Dr. Johns says. “You have to
social media rules rather than waiting until signs of overuse         follow your own rules. If they’re good for your children, they’re
emerge. One way is by creating a social media contract. This          good for you, too.”
document can define expectations for children, such as not
providing personal information online. The contract can also          IF YOU’RE CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR CHILD’S
stipulate that parents will have access to their children’s           SOCIAL MEDIA USE, A PEDIATRICIAN OR PEDIATRIC
social media accounts while also respecting their privacy, as         PSYCHOLOGIST CAN HELP. TO FIND ONE, VISIT
appropriate. Experts debate when it’s appropriate for children        WWW.CHILDRENSHOSPITALNH.ORG/PHYSICIANS.
to open their first social media account—age 12 is common—
but parental involvement and oversight are important
throughout the teen years.

TUMBLR  REDDIT        After   FACEBOOK INSTAGRAM PINTEREST                               LINKEDIN   ADULTS WHO
                    YouTube,                                                                       DON’T USE ANY
9%      7%                    69% 37% 28%                                                27%       FORM OF SOCIAL
                      adults
NONE OF THE ABOVE,    favor:  SNAPCHAT                                TWITTER  WHATSAPP    REDDIT       MEDIA
INCLUDING YOUTUBE
                              24%                                     22%      20%       11%         28%
     3%

                                                                               5WINTER 2019 | navicenthealth.org 
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