"The Liberal Democrats say children using social media apps should be shown cigarette-style health warnings to help protect their mental health. The party says the move would protect youngsters from "addictive algorithms", citing concerns over excessive phone usage. It also wants a two-hour "doomscrolling cap" limiting how long under-18s can access TikTok-style video clips. The party says its own research has shown excessive social media use can lead to anxiety, sleep disruption and shortened attention spans."
"Announcing the plan later at the party's autumn conference in Bournemouth, technology spokesperson Victoria Collins will say excessive social media use brings well-documented risks, "just like cigarettes or alcohol". She added that mandatory health alerts would not prevent teenagers using social media or connecting with friends online, but would "ensure they go into the experience with their eyes open to the risks"."
"When we pick up a pack of cigarettes or a bottle of wine, we expect to be told about the harm those products will pose to our health," she will argue. "So why is social media, the key driver of a crisis in young people's mental health, any different?" Graphic pictures to illustrate the dangers of smoking have been mandatory on cigarette packets in the UK since 2008."
The Liberal Democrats propose mandatory cigarette-style health warnings on social media apps used by children and a two-hour "doomscrolling" cap limiting under-18 access to short video clips. The measures aim to protect youngsters from "addictive algorithms" and reduce excessive phone usage linked to anxiety, sleep disruption and shortened attention spans. Technology spokesperson Victoria Collins compares social media risks to cigarettes and alcohol and says mandatory alerts would inform rather than prevent social connections. The proposal references prior suggestions by US health adviser Vivek Murthy and draws analogies with existing mandatory cigarette warnings and voluntary alcohol-label schemes.
Read at www.bbc.com
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