Is social media bad for your health? Well, it seems the government thinks so.

The United States Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy, has called for warning labels on social media platforms to inform parents about the potential mental health risks for adolescents. In an essay published in The New York Times on Monday, Dr. Murthy likened the dangers of social media to public health risks such as road fatalities and contaminated food.

While Dr. Murthy holds significant influence as the nation’s top health official, he does not have the authority to mandate warning labels independently. Congressional approval is required to enact such legislation, and as of now, no bill has been introduced in either chamber of Congress.

Dr. Murthy’s proposal emphasizes the urgent need for parental awareness regarding the safety of social media. “Social media has not been proved safe,” he asserted, highlighting research indicating that teens who spend more than three hours a day on these platforms face a significantly higher risk of mental health problems.

In his essay, Dr. Murthy described the widespread and urgent nature of the harms posed by social media, comparing them to other public health crises.

“These harms are not a failure of willpower and parenting; they are the consequence of unleashing powerful technology without adequate safety measures, transparency, or accountability,” he wrote.

Dr. Murthy referenced data showing that 46% of adolescents reported feeling worse about their bodies due to social media. U.S. teens, on average, spend 4.8 hours per day on platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram, according to a Gallup survey from last fall.

The concept of warning labels has historical precedence and has significantly impacted public health. Following a landmark report from the Surgeon General in 1965, Congress mandated warning labels on cigarette packages. This move contributed to a dramatic decline in smoking rates from 42% of U.S. adults in 1965 to 11.5% in 2021.

Dr. Murthy’s call for social media warning labels comes amid ongoing debates about the role of these platforms in the mental health crisis among children and adolescents. Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, in his book “The Anxious Generation,” attributes the rise in mental health issues to the 2007 release of the Apple iPhone, which marked the beginning of widespread social media use.

However, other experts argue that the correlation between social media and declining well-being is not necessarily causal, pointing to other contributing factors such as economic hardship, social isolation, racism, school shootings, and the opioid crisis.

In May 2023, Dr. Murthy issued an advisory on social media’s impact on youth, acknowledging that while the full effects are not entirely understood, there are significant indicators of potential harm. He urged parents to set limits on their children’s social media use and maintain device-free mealtimes.

Dr. Murthy’s latest call for warning labels reflects an increased sense of urgency. “In an emergency, you don’t have the luxury to wait for perfect information,” he wrote. “You assess the available facts, you use your best judgment, and you act quickly.”

He recounted the story of a mother who lost her child to suicide following online bullying, underscoring the lack of protective measures for children against social media’s risks.

“There is no seatbelt for parents to click, no helmet to snap in place,” he stated, emphasizing the need for systemic solutions rather than leaving parents to navigate these challenges alone.

Dr. Vivek Murthy’s proposal for warning labels on social media platforms aims to address the urgent mental health risks facing adolescents. By advocating for legislative action, he hopes to create a safer digital environment for young users, drawing parallels to past successful public health campaigns. As the debate continues, the push for increased awareness and protective measures gains momentum in the fight to safeguard the well-being of the nation’s youth.