Latest news with #JAMA
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Parents, You're Focusing on the Wrong Part of Your Kid's Screen Use
When it comes to monitoring kids and technology, parents are all doing the best we can. Especially in the summertime when rules fly out the window. However, a new study found that parents may actually be worried about the wrong thing when it comes to kids and screens. A study published June 18 in JAMA, a journal of the American Medical Association, found that the amount of time kids spent on social media, mobile phones, and video games wasn't linked to more internalized symptoms of mental health issues like anxiety and depression. Surprisingly, it also wasn't associated with externalized symptoms of mental health problems like rule breaking, aggression, suicidal behaviors, or suicidal ideation. This sounds good right? The problem is, researchers found that screen addiction was linked to both internal and external symptoms of mental health problems. More from SheKnows PopSockets Partnered With This Celeb-Loved Jewelry Brand to Drop Beach-Chic Limited-Edition Accessories There is a difference; a subtle distinction with big consequences. Yunyu Xiao, lead study author and an assistant professor in the department of population health sciences and department of psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, explained addiction as 'excessive use' that interferes with home responsibilities, schoolwork or other activities, per CNN. 'They find a craving for it and cannot stop using it,' he explained. The study found one in two of the young people in the study were on a 'high trajectory of addictive use' for mobile phones, while over 40 percent were on the same path for video games. For the kids with high or increasing use of social media and mobile phones, they were two to three times more likely to engage in suicidal behavior and suicidal ideations than kids on the lower trajectory. These kids also had increased risk of symptoms of mental health problems, with a high use of video games associated with a greater risk of symptoms of mental health problems, suicidal behaviors, and suicidal ideation. It's absolutely heartbreaking! And teens know they need help. In Feb. 2025, SheKnows spoke with teens in New York City about their phone use, and the results were concerning. One 16-year-old named Annabella told us that she spends 12 hours on her phone. 'My friends are on it [their phones], I feel like I couldn't get off it or certain apps, I don't know — I'm just, like, addicted,' Annabella admitted. The Anxious Generation author Jonathan Haidt recommends not giving your child a phone until high school, not allowing social media until 16, and encouraging real-world independence and risk-taking in kids. Ariana Hoet, Ph.D., executive clinical director of children's mental health organization On Our Sleeves, previously told SheKnows that she recommends designated screen-free times every day: during dinner, for example, and powering phones down a couple of hours before bedtime. You should also talk about screens as a family. 'You can talk about what social media platforms you're going to use. Who do you follow? What do you post? And then most importantly, when are the screen-free times? What are other activities you're doing? Who do you go to if you're worried about something?' Dr. Hoet told us. 'You also need to establish the consequences: what happens if these rules are broken?' Dr. Becky Kennedy, psychologist, author, and mom of three previously told SheKnows that screen time isn't inherently bad for kids. It all depends on what the screen time is being used for and if your kids have a healthy balance. She suggests parents define screen time boundaries in advance, encourage kids to learn on their screen before playing, and anticipate the meltdowns around screen time by setting firm boundaries about when to put it up at the end of the day. 'To me, if you're a parent who's just struggling with screen time with your kid, you're probably doing it right. It's a tool we need to use,' she told us. 'It's something I don't think parents need to feel guilty about. It's just something parents need to have a level of mindfulness about relative to making sure we're setting up our home today for success — but that we're also setting up our kids for success long-term.' Look out for these signs that your child might be addicted to cell phones or video games, per the Mayo Clinic: Intense urges for screen time or video games that block out other thoughts. Cutting back on social or recreational activities because of preference for screen time or video games. Feeling irritable, anxiety, or anger when forced to stop playing, even for brief periods of time. Lying to others about the extent of their use. Needing more screen time over time to get the same level of enjoyment. Neglecting their appearance, including lack of interest in grooming or clothing. If you think your child is developing a phone or video game addiction, call their pediatrician and/or therapist for help managing their addiction in a screen-heavy of SheKnows Tween & Teen Slang 2025: A Definitive Guide to 'What the Hellyante' Your Kid Is Saying Right Now Celebrity Parents Who Are So Proud of Their LGBTQ Kids Recent Baby & Toddler Product Recalls Every Parent and Caregiver Should Know About
Forbes
19 hours ago
- Health
- Forbes
The Unsung and (Often Exhausted) Heroes: Moms
The young mother was visibly exhausted. She had been up for two nights as her six-month-old ran a fever and cried nonstop. She had thought about going to the ER but worried about the long wait, especially without childcare for her two-year-old as her husband was out of town. Now she was in the pediatrics office with an air of despair. 'Please help me. I don't know what's wrong with my child". Parenting Can Be Stressful Being a parent is a journey, even in the best of times. Whether it's a sick infant, a clumsy toddler with a broken arm, a 9-year old starting the soccer season with a concussion, or a teen struggling with anxiety at school, the potential challenges can be endless. Unfortunately, the weight of parenting and supporting kids through this myriad of issues often falls disproportionately on moms. Almost 25% of women leave their jobs in the first year after having kids. After five years, only about 30 percent of these moms have returned to work. Over three-quarters of moms report they are the ones responsible for managing their children's healthcare. It is not surprising to see that JAMA recently published a study about the stress and decline in mental health that moms are experiencing. This seems to be relevant to many professions. In a Healio survey of physicians, 64 percent of women reported that they had caregiving responsibilities, and greater than 50% reported that this had a significant impact on their stress levels. Mental Health is Often Impacted Maternal stress and mental health can have rippling effects and impact kids' own mental health, affect their social skills, educational success, and even their weight. These consequences may begin even before birth – infants of mothers dealing with depression, anxiety, or stress while they were pregnant have been shown to struggle more with social and emotional development. Parental mental illness is one of the adverse childhood experiences that the American Academy of Pediatrics flags as high risk for leading to poor health as adults. Community is Key Stress and mental illness do not exist in a vacuum - a multitude of external factors exert stress on a parent's day-to-day life, from financial instability and food insecurity, to lack of childcare and mental health services. Policies that protect and expand social services for families would help to alleviate many stressors that parents may face, including protections for SNAP, Medicaid, and legislation to support affordable childcare. Guaranteed robust and paid maternity leave policies would allow new moms to heal, rest, and adapt to this next chapter. In Europe, for example, many countries offer up to a year of parental leave, with much of it paid. Online community support can be helpful and some resources do exist. The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline is available at 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262) via text or call as a 24/7 service for pregnant people or moms to talk to counselors who can provide support and refer them to local resources. Self Compassion Can Buffer Stress But an essential change to help our moms, often the 'Chief Health Officers' of the family, is a culture shift. Moms and caregivers should be encouraged to get off the treadmill, pause, take care of themselves and support systems should be in place to allow this to happen. This concept of 'self compassion' has been studied extensively and has made a difference in teachers, healthcare professionals and parents. The 'reset' includes breathing techniques, visualization, guided meditation and mindset shifts. To allow for these pauses, our essential caregivers must also have an inner team of family and friends that they can hand off to, or lean on, so they can take time to reset and breathe. Imagine this - the young mother calls her neighbor, who watches her toddler while she takes her baby to urgent care. The doctor diagnoses the child with an ear infection, prescribes antibiotics and shows her how to suction her baby's nose so he (and she) can sleep soundly. Everyone wakes up the next day rested and calm. Self compassion, connection and a village are essential parts of helping our most significant caregivers- moms. When we uplift our moms and other caregivers, there is a rippling effect to the health of the children now and longterm. Written with Alice Gao, MD.
Indian Express
a day ago
- Health
- Indian Express
Real risk to youth mental health is ‘addictive use,' not screen time alone, study finds
As Americans scramble to respond to rising rates of suicidal behavior among youth, many policymakers have locked in on an alarming metric: the number of hours a day that American children spend glued to a glowing screen. But a study published Wednesday in the medical journal JAMA, which followed more than 4,000 children across the country, arrived at a surprising conclusion: Longer screen time at age 10 was not associated with higher rates of suicidal behavior four years later. Instead, the authors found, the children at higher risk for suicidal behaviors were those who told researchers their use of technology had become 'addictive' — that they had trouble putting it down or felt the need to use it more and more. Some children exhibited addictive behavior even if their screen time was relatively low, they said. The researchers found addictive behavior to be very common among children — especially in their use of mobile phones, where nearly half had high addictive use. By age 14, children with high or increasing addictive behavior were two to three times as likely as other children to have thoughts of suicide or to harm themselves, the study found. 'This is the first study to identify that addictive use is important and is actually the root cause, instead of time,' said Yunyu Xiao, an assistant professor of psychiatry and population health sciences at Weill Cornell Medical College and the study's lead author. Addictive behavior may be more difficult to control during childhood, before the prefrontal cortex, which acts as a brake on impulsivity, is fully developed. Xiao said interventions should focus on the child's addictive behavior, which is typically treated with cognitive behavioral psychotherapy, rather than simply limiting access to screens. 'If there are early warnings, then for parents, it's important to seek professional help for children with such addictions,' she said. 'We do not know if just taking away their phone will help. Sometimes it can create some conflict in the family, and that is even worse.' The focus on addictive behavior has important policy implications, shifting more responsibility onto the technology companies that design devices and social media platforms, said Mitch Prinstein, chief science officer at the American Psychological Association. Policymakers can address addiction by requiring technology companies to introduce 'age-appropriate design' that limits features adolescents find difficult to resist, he said. The United Kingdom introduced a code of this kind in 2020.
Medscape
a day ago
- Health
- Medscape
The Empathy Surgeons Often Forget at the Bedside
For patients and families, the need for urgent surgery — such as after a new cancer diagnosis or an unexpected postoperative complication like a perforated ulcer — often comes as a shock. Rather than delivering the news abruptly, clinicians should begin with a preparatory statement such as 'I have serious news' or 'Things have changed,' recommended Lauren J. Taylor, MD, and colleagues in a recent JAMA article. Addressing Emotions First The new information should then be presented clearly, under a simple heading — for example, 'You have a hole in your intestines. We usually treat this with surgery and several days in the hospital.' The authors advised against overwhelming patients and families with long technical explanations or exhaustive lists of potential complications, which often dominate informed consent discussions. This kind of news frequently provokes intense emotional responses, including fear, grief, or anger. In such moments, physicians should prioritize empathy over clinical detail. Simple acknowledgments like 'It must be hard to see your dad this sick' or 'I wish I had better news' can provide far more comfort than factual explanations alone. Scenario Planning Over Statistics In high-stress situations, many patients struggle to understand the likely course of illness. Even when complications and prognosis are clearly explained, patients often underestimate the risks or overestimate their chances of survival — especially in life-threatening conditions. In these cases, numerical statistics may fail as effective communication tools. Instead, Taylor and colleagues advocate for 'scenario planning,' a method adapted from business strategy. This approach involves presenting a spectrum of plausible outcomes: 'In the best-case scenario, we hope she'll recover after a short hospital stay and return home,' followed by, 'In the worst-case scenario, I'm concerned about serious complications or even that she may not survive this illness.' Stating Goals and Limitations of Surgery Consent conversations often focus heavily on surgical technique and potential complications, which can divert attention from what patients truly need to understand. There is also a risk of oversimplifying the procedure with phrases like 'We'll fix this,' which may create false reassurance. A more effective approach is to clearly articulate the goals of surgery — such as prolonging life, relieving symptoms, preserving function, or enabling a diagnosis — and to explain what the surgery cannot achieve. While technical risks like bleeding or infection are usually addressed, broader consequences, including pain, prolonged recovery, and the potential loss of independence, are often underdiscussed. It is also important to recognize that the patient's goals may differ from those of the surgical team. This is particularly relevant in cases such as cancer surgery, where a technically successful operation may not align with a patient's preferences — especially if extending life at all costs is not the patient's priority.
Medscape
a day ago
- Health
- Medscape
Addictive Screen Use Risky for Teen Mental Health
Problematic patterns of digital media use — including compulsive social media scrolling, gaming, or phone checking — may be more harmful to adolescent mental health than overall screen time, new research suggested. Investigators found that teens with high or increasing levels of addictive digital use were more likely to report symptoms of depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts or behaviors. In contrast, total screen time showed no consistent link to mental health outcomes. The findings support emerging evidence that addictive screen use may be a more salient risk factor for suicidality and mental health in adolescents, the researchers, led by Yunyu Xiao, PhD, Department of Population Health Sciences, Weill Cornell Medicine/New York Presbyterian, noted. The study was published online on June 18 in JAMA . Filling a Data Gap Previous research has largely focused on total screen time rather than longitudinal addictive use trajectories. To address this gap, the investigators analyzed 4 years of data from 4285 children (mean age, 10 years; 48% women) participating in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study. Validated self-report questionnaires were used to assess and track addictive use of social media, cell phones and video games, including compulsive habits, distress when not using these platforms, and failed attempts to cut back. The researchers used latent class linear mixed models to identify different trajectories of addictive screen use and classify adolescents into subgroups based on their screen use patterns over time. They found that nearly one third of participants had an increasing addictive use trajectory for social media or mobile phones starting at age 11 years. In adjusted models, increasing addictive use trajectories were associated with higher risks for suicide-related outcomes than low addictive use trajectories. Increasing addictive use of social media had a risk ratio of 2.14 for suicidal behaviors. Likewise, high addictive use trajectories across all screen types were associated with suicide-related outcomes. High-peaking addictive use of social media conferred a risk ratio of 2.39 for suicidal behaviors. Adolescents with high-peaking or increasing social media use or high video game use also had more internalizing symptoms such as depression/anxiety or externalizing symptoms such as aggression and rule-breaking. Notably, there was no significant correlation between baseline total screen time and any suicide-related or mental health outcomes. Adolescence — a Risky Time The authors of a linked editorial noted that adolescence is a vulnerable time for addictive behaviors in general and that young adolescents are particularly susceptible to screen addiction. They pointed out that the current study underscores the 'growing concern' around addictive screen use and its significant impact on the mental health of young people. 'While most interventions focus on limiting or monitoring screen time, the current study suggests that preventive strategies may also target trajectories or patterns of addictive screen use,' wrote Jason Nagata, MD, Christiane Helmer, MPH, and Abubakr Al-Shoaibi, PhD, with University of California, San Francisco. 'These results emphasize the importance of addressing not just screen time but also addictive behaviors in adolescents' and the need to 'conceptualize screen time and addictive use as separate constructs, particularly when examining associations with mental health outcomes,' the editorialists added. Experts Weigh In Several experts offered perspective on the study in a statement from the UK nonprofit Science Media Centre. Lisa Henderson, PhD, head of the Department of Psychology, University of York, York, England, called the study 'critical and timely' and one that contributes a 'much-needed large-scale longitudinal analysis to the debate on digital harms in young people.' The fact that 1 in 2 adolescents had a high addictive use trajectory for video games, 1 in 3 for social media, and 1 in 4 for mobile phone use, is 'alarming, although some caution should be taken in extrapolating these findings to now given this study spanned the pandemic,' Henderson commented. She also noted that the study did not directly address 'bidirectionality — that young people at greater risk of mental health problems may be more likely to turn to digital activities such as video gaming and social media, with this in turn feeding a further downward spiral in mental health.' Chris Ferguson, PhD, professor of psychology, Stetson University, DeLand, Florida, highlighted two takeaways from the study — one is that time spent on screens does not predict mental health, and the other is that for some kids overusing screens can be a red flag for other problems. Ferguson said it would be 'a mistake to think that removing screens would solve those problems…; this study doesn't show that. However, screen overuse can be a sign that kids are stressed in other areas. Other studies suggest this typically comes from schools and families, not the screens themselves.' Amy Orben, DPhil, with the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, England, said the study 'importantly highlights that why and how young people use technologies, and how they feel technologies affect their lives, may matter more to their mental health than the time spent online. As those reporting such issues are not a small proportion of the population, supporting them should be taken seriously.'
