“How old are you?”

When 14-year-old Liselle Yoo gets asked this question, she often gets told she looks older than her 16-year-old sister. Yoo, an eighth grader at Frank S. Greene Jr. Middle School, said she noticed herself growing up faster compared to her older sister at Palo Alto High School.

“I think that social media speeds up growth very rapidly, both physically and mentally,” Yoo said. “In the physical sense, I definitely grew up faster due to seeing all the videos of new fashion trends and ‘body checks’ [showing off ‘ideal’ appearances].”

Yoo had much more exposure to social media and that over a longer period than her older sister who had little to no interest in social media until she was around 15.

This trend is seen just as vividly in local communities. At Paly, 75% of the 40 respondents to a Verde opt-in survey reported that their younger sibling got social media at a younger age than they did and 60% said that their younger sibling had social media as they entered middle school.

In addition, an article by the New York Times said that kids and teens in America are spending more time than ever using screens and social media, with the number of hours spent online increasing drastically since the pandemic. Data from a survey conducted by Common Sense Media showed that overall screen use among tweens (ages 8 to 12) and teens (ages 13 to 18) increased by 17% from 2019 to 2021, which is a greater increase rapidly in comparison to the four years prior.

Dr. Casey Krueger, a clinical psychologist at Stanford Children’s Health, said that there are multiple effects of kids being exposed to social media and technology at an earlier age.

“This [increased exposure] results in children contemplating more mature content, information and ideas at younger ages,” Krueger said. “The question is does this correlate with increased emotional maturity? Kids may have more difficulty learning how to manage and express their emotions appropriately given the increased complexity and speed of information exchange.”

Stacy Savickas, an art teacher at Greene said she has observed more of a positive impact that increased exposure has on her students, compared to her students 20 years ago.

“Now there’s this expectation that knowledge is at your fingertips,” Savickas said. “The processing of knowledge is different. I think kids are much smarter. They are given access to a lot more, so they have a lot more information.”

However, Savickas also said social media affects her students’ sleep schedules the most.

“I think texting and engaging on phones has most affected sleep,” Savickas said. “That aspect is detrimental to their experience at school.”

Additionally, Vicki Harrison, Program Director of the Center for Youth Mental Health and Wellbeing at Stanford University, said that social media inflicts harmful narratives around body image, and therefore puts pressure for weight loss on adolescents.

“Young people are really trying to learn from the world around them and take cues about what’s ‘normal’ and what’s considered attractive and unattractive,” Harrison said. “So, they might be getting those narratives from social media influencers who are being paid to advertise certain products.”

A Palo Alto High School sophomore, who will be referred to as Emma to withhold her identity, agrees. She said that expectations from social media impact her 12 and 13-year-old cousins.

“I think it’s sad that they think they need to change something about them when it’s not even done growing and when it shouldn’t be changed yet,” Emma said.

Krueger agreed.

“There is a lot of research showing a correlation between heavy social media use and increased risk of depression and anxiety as well as poor body image, loneliness, and self-harm,” Krueger said. “Habitual checking of social media was associated with increased sensitivity to peer feedback… Children who spend more than three hours per day on social media have double the risk of experiencing symptoms of depression and anxiety. In adolescents, exposure to social media may overstimulate the brain’s reward center. Excessive use and overstimulation may trigger addiction.”

To counteract this, Savickas, Krueger and Harrison all said it’s important for parents to supervise their children’s media consumption.

“Parents should model appropriate behavior and use,” Krueger said. “Engage in shared decision-making and decide on parental controls. Phones should be charged somewhere other than the child’s bedroom at night and should be shut off 1-2 hours before bed. Limit social media use to specific short periods two or three times per day. Set time limits for specific apps. Have ongoing conversations about social media use.”

Harrison said parents should delay when their kids get phones and social media, then gradually introduce access.

“If you’re handing it to someone really young and they haven’t developed self-regulation to the extent that they can really monitor and moderate their use, it’s really hard to pull away,” Harrison said. “It’s a muscle you have to build and that comes with maturity as you grow, and also the ability to know when something’s a little bit suspicious, weird or doesn’t seem factual.”

Krueger concludes that there are ups and downs to this social media spike.

“Social media has potential benefits, including increased communication, education, information sharing and connection opportunities,” Krueger said. “This is coupled with potential risks including privacy concerns, cyberbullying, mental health problems, encouragement of risky behaviors and decreased sleep. Make sure you avoid negative things online and ensure you are also engaging in positive in-person activities and interactions. Life is all about balance.”