New study finds frequently checking social media may change the brains of young teens

BOSTON -- A new study found that frequently checking social media may change the brains of young teens.

Researchers at the University of North Carolina performed brain scans on nearly 170 sixth- and seventh-grade students and found that those who habitually checked social media platforms Facebook, Instagram, or Snapchat around age 12 showed greater sensitivity to social rewards and punishments over time.

That means the kids who visit these sites 15 or more times a day may be more hypersensitive to feedback from their peers than kids who check social media less often.

It is unclear what the long-term consequences of this may be good or bad.

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Mallika Marshall, MD

Mallika Marshall, MD is an Emmy-award-winning journalist and physician who has served as the HealthWatch Reporter for CBS Boston/WBZ-TV for over 20 years. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School.

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