APA Advises Parents To Monitor Teens’ Social Media Use
The new guidelines from the American Psychological Association are a first, NPR reports, and they are aimed at teens, parents, teachers, and policymakers during a time when teens are facing high rates of depression and anxiety. The APA also says teens should be trained in media literacy.
NPR:
Teens' Social Media Use Should Be Monitored By Parents, APA Says
For the first time, the American Psychological Association has issued recommendations for guiding teenager's use of social media. The advisory, released Tuesday, is aimed at teens, parents, teachers and policy makers. This comes at a time when teenagers are facing high rates of depression, anxiety and loneliness. And, as NPR has reported, there's mounting evidence that social media can exacerbate and even cause these problems. (Doucleff, 5/9)
NBC News:
Teens Should Be Trained In Media Literacy And Limit Their Screen Time, Psychologists Say
“There is a lot of talk about social media these days, including some suggestions that do not fit with the science,” said APA chief science officer Mitch Prinstein, a co-chair of the advisory panel that developed the recommendations. “We are releasing this report now to offer a science-based and balanced perspective on this issue so all stakeholders can make decisions based on our expertise regarding benefits and potential risks associated with social media.” (Rosenblatt, 5/9)
In other health and wellness news —
CIDRAP:
Study Links Early Antibiotic Use To Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease
A study presented late last week at the Digestive Disease Week 2023 conference suggests that exposure to antibiotics at an early age is among the factors that can increase the risk of pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). (Dall, 5/8)
Military Times:
The Marine Corps Will Once Again Require Troops To Get Breathalyzed
Marine units must once again conduct random breathalyzer tests on assigned troops, following a years-long pause in the program because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Because Marines must blow into the apparatus, the federal government’s COVID-19 emergency policies had “necessitated” a halt to the testing of on-duty Marines for alcohol via breathalyzer, according to a Marine administrative message. But with the public health emergency officially ending May 11, units are required to resume the testing by June, if they haven’t done so already. (Loewenson, 5/8)
Iowa Public Radio:
ISU Researchers Get A Grant To Examine If People Who Get Cybersickness From Virtual Reality Can Adapt
Women who use virtual reality headsets tend to experience nausea and dizziness from exposure to the immersive computer-generated environment more often than men. That’s the sum of the work from Iowa State University psychology and engineering researchers, who have received a $600,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to further their research and examine adaptation to the technology. Cybersickness is something ISU psychology professor Jonathan Kelly describes as akin to motion sickness. A person may feel symptoms such as nausea, dizziness or a headache. (Peikes, 5/8)
Reuters:
Woman Who Sued Over Subway Tuna Seeks To Quit Case, Subway Demands Sanctions
The California woman suing Subway, claiming its tuna products contain ingredients other than tuna, wants to end her lawsuit because she is pregnant, prompting Subway to demand her lawyers be sanctioned for bringing a frivolous case. (Stempel, 5/8)
On maternal deaths —
Reuters:
Global Push To Tackle Maternal And Newborn Deaths Has Stalled, WHO Report Finds
Progress in reducing deaths during pregnancy and childbirth and among newborn infants has stalled since 2015, and over 60 countries are on track to miss 2030 targets at current rates, a World Health Organization report released on Tuesday found. The COVID-19 pandemic, poverty, and worsening humanitarian crises have strained already pressured healthcare systems, the U.N. agency said in a statement. (5/9)
Bloomberg:
Severe Bleeding Risk After Childbirth Drops With Low-Cost Measures, Study Shows
Simple, low-cost measures can reduce the risk of excessive bleeding after childbirth, the leading causes of maternal postpartum death, according to a study of interventions that can prevent complications primarily afflicting women in lower-income countries. (Kew, 5/9)
