Screens fuel anxiety, depression, obesity in children, federal advisory warns 

Excessive screen use poses significant harms to children, and Americans must work to reduce the electronic addiction affecting youth, the Department of Health and Human Services said in a report released last week.

The Office of the Surgeon General, a division of HHS, released an advisory and toolkit May 20 for parents, educators, health care providers and researchers aimed at protecting children and adolescents from the harms of screen use.

“The report is a nice summary of a lot of the conversations that have been happening in the public square, and now to have them summarized and given a stamp of public health approval by the Office of the Surgeon General is really notable,” Ethics and Public Policy Center fellow Patrick T. Brown told The Lion.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. released the advisory after attending a bill signing in Iowa, where Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a “Make America Healthy Again” bill focused on nutrition, exercise and limiting screen use in schools, according to a news release.

“This is something that’s gaining momentum across the country,” Brown said, referring to efforts in states across the political spectrum to reduce technology use in schools.

Another EPPC fellow, Clare Morell, recently published a five-step guide for schools seeking to protect children from digital harms. Morell, author of The Tech Exit, said the HHS advisory is the first of its kind to address screen use broadly rather than focusing primarily on social media.

“It sounds an alarm that this is a public health crisis that we can do things about,” Morell told The Lion. “And it seems they tried to make it action-oriented in terms of what these different stakeholder groups can do to fight this screen-based childhood and get kids back playing outside and reading books.

“I hope that it’s a first step,” Morell continued. “That this administration, and specifically the Department of Health and Human Services, continues to do more on this issue.”

HHS advisory warns of screen harms

The advisory says a child may be experiencing harm from excessive screen use when parents observe behaviors such as hiding screen activity, withdrawing from non-screen activities or reacting angrily when devices are removed. According to the report, toddlers spend about two hours per day using media devices, while teenagers average four or more hours of screen time daily.

“Children today spend more time on screens than sleeping, exercising or engaging face-to-face with family and friends – and we are seeing the consequences in rising rates of anxiety, depression, obesity and developmental challenges,” Kennedy said in a statement.

Half of all teenagers report experiencing cyberbullying and 3.5% to 5% of children face sextortion before adulthood, according to the advisory. Greater screen time also correlates with a higher likelihood of tobacco and nicotine use.

“Kids are growing up in digital spaces that were never designed for their safety, and these online experiences are shaping how they think, feel and interact in real life. We want children to live real life, not be pulled into harmful environments online,” Dr. Stephanie Haridoplos, director of national health communications for the Office of the Surgeon General, said in a statement.

Excessive screen use can contribute to language delays, academic difficulties, behavioral problems and various physical and mental health concerns, the report says. Children heavily dependent on technology often have shorter attention spans and lower academic performance.

The advisory also notes that youth who spend extended periods seated and focused on screens are generally less physically active and more likely to consume ultra-processed foods, increasing overall calorie intake.

Technology and declining outdoor activity

Children who spend more time on screens also tend to spend less time engaged in outdoor activities and physical play.

“American children are weirdly held hostage indoors,” former Sen. Ben Sasse wrote in a recent Wall Street Journal essay.

While children often have unrestricted internet access, many parents have become increasingly cautious about allowing independent outdoor activities, Sasse argued. He cited research showing nearly 60% of 6-year-olds are not permitted to play outside unsupervised.

“Allowed to navigate dark corners of the internet on their own, many kids are bizarrely prohibited from exploring their own neighborhoods,” Sasse wrote. “This overprotection, however well-meaning, prevents children from learning valuable lessons like overcoming boredom, conquering fear and taking risks.”

Parents sometimes assume a child using a tablet indoors is safer than one playing outside because the child remains within sight, Morell said. However, she noted that predators can reach children through apps, games and other online platforms.

“But the reality is that these screens invite the opportunity for hundreds of predators online into our homes without a parent’s awareness, where they would actually be much safer playing outside,” she said. “It’s nearly impossible for parents to oversee a tablet or a smartphone. So the risk of children being exposed to harms online is a lot greater than playing outside.”

Screens also affect childhood development, Morell said. Constant scrolling and platform switching can weaken attention spans, memory and creativity. The ease and entertainment of digital devices may also condition children to expect immediate gratification rather than developing perseverance and self-discipline.

“Interacting in the real world, there are certain frictions and things that require us to work hard and to be perseverant, to overcome these things, all of which help children progress towards adulthood,” she said. “The screen is easy, instant access. There’s no friction. There’s infinite scroll and there’s autoplay, and you can literally amuse yourself and entertain yourself constantly. This means you’re not developing these skills that you need to succeed as an adult, like self-control, hard work and determination.”

Brown also pointed to what he calls the “individualization of entertainment,” a trend he has written about on Substack. Social media platforms increasingly rely on algorithm-driven content rather than interactions with friends and family, drawing users into endless streams of videos and influencer content.

Practical ways to reduce screen dependence

The HHS advisory offers recommendations for parents, educators, health care providers, policymakers and researchers to reduce children’s dependence on screens.

Among the recommendations are delaying the introduction of screens for as long as possible and establishing designated screen-free times. Parents are encouraged to offer alternative activities and participate in shared screen experiences when appropriate.

“I can see the value in watching movies as a family, watching TV shows together as a family, watching sports together as a family – at least you’re interacting with each other,” Brown said. “That seems to me to be a more useful mode of entertainment rather than everyone has a screen in their own room, everyone has a computer, and retreats to their own corners after dinner.”

Parents should also model healthy technology habits themselves, Morell said. She recommends “tech transparency,” in which adults explain the purpose of their device use, such as sending a message or scheduling an activity.

“It doesn’t necessarily mean that we all have to give up our phones, but that they should have really appropriate times and places for use,” Morell said. “We’re showing our kids we’re using them as tools, but they’re not something that’s distracting us from our children. So, we really try to physically distance ourselves from our phones when we’re home.”

Schools urged to reduce screen reliance

The advisory also encourages schools to reduce their dependence on screens for instruction.

Brown said the shift toward one-to-one devices accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic and many schools have continued those practices even after returning to in-person instruction.

“What we found is that educational outcomes have gone down, that kids become sort of habituated to relying on screens, and that’s not good for them,” Brown said. “It’s not necessary for education, as it was practiced for hundreds of years.”

Brown argued that meaningful change will require cooperation among parents, educators and policymakers. Without broader support, technology restrictions may vary widely among families.

He noted that some families rely on technology because of financial realities, making it difficult to reduce screen use without support from schools and communities.

Because of that, Brown said schools and state governments should help families reduce technology dependence across multiple areas of life.

The cultural conversation about the harms of excessive screen use has been building for years, he said, and the new advisory offers practical steps for addressing the problem.