Higher social media usage could be linked to increased rates of depression among young adolescents, according to a new study published Wednesday by researchers at UCSF.
The nationwide study, which tracked the cognitive development of nearly 12,000 children and adolescents over the course of a few years, found that their social media use rose significantly between the ages of 9 and 13. Depressive symptoms likewise increased in these children by more than 30% during the same time period, with the study suggesting that the two may be related.
“If an individual teen increased their social media use from year to year, that increase was associated with a subsequent rise in depression,” said Dr. Jason Nagata, a pediatrician at UCSF and the study’s lead author.