Experts are advocating for coordinated global efforts to address the harmful effects of excessive digital media use on young people's mental health, sleep quality, and physical activity. A recent series published in The Lancet highlights concerns over technology companies prioritizing commercial goals over public health, with researchers accusing them of treating health considerations as secondary.
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The series, which includes a comprehensive review of studies involving nine million individuals under 25, found that excessive digital media consumption, termed "problematic use," correlates with increased risks of mental health issues, disrupted sleep, and reduced physical activity. Although the evidence linking these issues is described as "modest," it underscores the pressing need for action.
Professor Ilona Kickbusch from the Digital Transformations for Health Lab (DTH-Lab) in Switzerland emphasized that digital media is now integral to the experiences of children and young adults. She criticized the lack of regulation, stating that technology companies have effectively been allowed to set their own rules, leading to business models that exploit user attention while neglecting health considerations.
Louise Holly of DTH-Lab UK pointed out that while the associations between digital media use and health harms are not statistically strong and rely on uncertain evidence, they still warrant a coordinated global response. The researchers estimate that just over two hours of daily screen time could correlate with the loss of approximately 2.8 million healthy years of life globally due to depression and an additional 240,000 years related to obesity annually. Dr. Falk Muller-Riemenschneider from the National University of Singapore clarified that these figures are illustrative rather than precise assessments of harm.
The series also recommends several actions for governments, including requiring technology firms to assess potential risks of new products before launch and mandating data transparency for independent research. Additionally, the researchers propose establishing an international panel to oversee AI risks for children and a global governance treaty under the World Health Organization to set minimum standards and prevent lax regulations.
Professor Barbara Prainsack from the University of Vienna likened the strategies of tech companies to those used by the tobacco and fossil fuel industries, which often aim to sow doubt and resist regulation. She argued that effective public health regulation can drive innovation toward safer practices rather than stifle it.
Dr. Jay Shaw from the University of Toronto stressed the necessity of investigating how specific design features of digital platforms, aimed at capturing attention, impact user behavior, rather than solely focusing on the amount of time spent online.
This call to action follows one of the largest studies on pediatric screen time, which found that increased usage can adversely affect various aspects of well-being, including academic performance and emotional health, based on data from over 2.8 million children across 64 countries.