From the moment I was handed a phone, I was hooked. If I wanted to know what my peers were up to, it was now just a click away. I spent my days scrolling, constantly seeking whatever bits of unnecessary information I could find about others.

This rush lasted for all of seventh grade—until, thankfully, a screen-time limit was finally enforced on my devices.

Take a moment to reflect on the last time you found yourself endlessly scrolling through social media, and the effect it had on you. Was your mood boosted? Did you feel carefree? The instant gratification social media provides grants a dopamine-like result that can be addictive and engulfing. This can leave you feeling rewarded, and in turn planted at your screen’s mercy for hours on end. Anna Lembke, a Stanford psychiatrist, refers to social media as today’s “addictive substance of choice, whether we realize it or not”.  

The detriments of social media overuse appear to be having the most extreme effects on adolescents. A 2023 survey administered by Pew Research Center found that “9 in 10 teens use social media daily” with half of those interviewed noting the need to use the internet “almost constantly.”

This rapidly growing obsession has raised mental health concerns amongst many experts and specialists who point to the rising rates of anxiety, depression and suicide rates among adolescents. As usage of social media increased in the early 2010s, so did suicide rates among adolescents. According to the CDC, between 2007 and 2015, adolescent male suicide rates increased by 31% and suicide rates among female adolescents increased a staggeringly 112%. In 2022 alone, there were upwards of 6,000 suicides amongst young people ages 15-24. 

Connecticut is not immune to this crisis. The number of youth suicides in 2024 was double that of 2023. In addition, “more than 16 children per day in Connecticut seek treatment at emergency rooms for suicidal ideation or suicide attempts”, while suicide climbs the ranks of youth and adolscent causes of death. Surely, this isn’t a coincidence, rather a crisis unfolding in real time.

While certainly there are many pressures on adolescents, and more research needs to be done, new emerging evidence suggests a troubling connection between excessive social media engagement and declining mental well-being. Excessive scrolling has been tied to negative thought patterns, shortened attention spans and social isolation, all of which are a negative influence on adolescent development.

Renowned social psychologist Johnathan Haidt, blames smartphones and social media for the profound spike in teen suicide rates, and criticizes Congress for further exploiting this problem. Haidt is particularly critical of the “Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule”, expressing concern over its lackadaisical age-verification measures and weak enforcement.  

I agree with experts like Jonathan Haidt and I second his call for political intervention to limit adolescent social media use, particularly in algorithm-based sites like TikTok. The fear with these types of sites is that they are over-exposing young people to highly curated and often unrealistic portrayals of life. Tiktok has demonstrated the harmful effects this has, as frequent use has been “closely linked with an increase in symptoms of anxiety and depression”.

Only recently have meaningful consequences begun to emerge in response to platform misconduct. In March 2026, a California jury ruled that Meta and Google should pay $6 million to a woman for their hand in “fueling a youth mental health crisis.” 

Different policy approaches should target parental intervention, content restrictions, and violation enforcement, all of which were considered within Connecticut House Bill 6857 of 2025. The bill, which failed to pass in the 2025 session,  would have required parental consent for minors to access algorithm-based content, and mandated default settings that limit personalized content and notifications. Its signing would have marked a significant step toward protecting young users from the manipulative design of social media platforms, while encouraging parents to play a more active role in their children’s digital consumption.

While the bill contained some linguistic faults, particularly in its hazy explanation of age verification processes, targeted revisions in the next legislative session could strengthen its clarity. One promising approach would be to incorporate third-party verification providers that use privacy-preserving technologies. This approach may also be more appealing to the Senate, as it potentially addresses concerns about data privacy while maintaining protective ideals.

Ultimately, reclaiming control over our adolescent screens requires more than conscious awareness, but rather imminent action from policy makers. If we are serious about protecting the next generation, regulations must be implemented that limit algorithm-driven exposures, while holding big tech companies accountable for poor outcomes. By prioritizing structured safeguards over self-regulation, we can lift the burden placed on adolescents to navigate tricky platforms alone. In doing so, we invest not only in healthier youth habits, but also in a healthier, safer future.

Matt Dworkowitz is a junior at Sacred Heart University, studying Health Science, with a Public Health concentration.