Social media as bad for young people as smoking, top doctors say
The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges says doctors should routinely check on screen time and social media use when seeing younger patients.
Coverage by Political Leaning
See how different sides of the spectrum reported this story
Key People
No people linked to this story
Locations
All Coverage
The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges says doctors should routinely check on screen time and social media use when seeing younger patients.
The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges warns that social media poses risks to children comparable to smoking, urging government action to protect young people from online harms.
Health experts liken the dangers of social media use by under-16s to smoking, as the UK government considers implementing a ban on social media for this age group.
Senior British doctors warn that social media poses risks to children comparable to smoking, urging lawmakers to address the harm caused by excessive screen time.
Leading doctors warn that social media poses a threat to young people comparable to smoking, urging the UK government to consider a ban for under-16s.
British doctors equate the dangers of social media use by children to smoking, calling for stronger government action to protect young people from online harms.
Similar Stories
Related coverage based on topic and tags
Tech Life
The impact screen time is having on younger children.
July 7, 2026 at 08:00 PMBBC Inside Science
How do you research the impacts of social media on young people?
June 18, 2026 at 04:00 PMYouTube still recommending eating disorder videos to teens, research finds
The site is continuing to recommend harmful videos despite new rules meant to better protect teenagers in the UK, a study finds.
July 13, 2026 at 11:05 PMEU threatens Meta with fines over 'addictive' Facebook and Instagram
Regulators say features such as infinite scroll contribute to "compulsive use" and "unhealthy habits".
July 10, 2026 at 12:02 PMMidnight social media curfew proposed for older UK teens
Teens will be able to opt out of the restrictions - campaigners have criticised them as being piecemeal.
July 14, 2026 at 11:17 PMParents warned not to publicly share children’s images amid AI abuse risks
The NCA says there is a growing threat of children's images being used to create child abuse material.
July 3, 2026 at 03:57 PM