Ritu Chatterjee
👤 SpeakerAppearances Over Time
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The findings are published in JAMA Oncology.
The new study in JAMA Network Open found that a week of social media detox led to reductions in symptoms of anxiety, depression and insomnia in people aged 18 to 24.
Psychiatrist Dr. Amir Afkami is at George Washington University and wasn't involved in the new study.
He says those with insomnia should limit nighttime scrolling, whereas people with social anxiety should try other strategies.
Those who use social media when bored, he says, should try a walk or a run instead.
Researchers recruited nearly 400 young adults and tracked their social media use for two weeks using an app.
On average, the participants use Facebook, Snapchat, TikTok, and other social media for about two hours a day.
The scientists also screened participants for their mental health symptoms at baseline before offering them a week-long social media detox.
Dr. Elambe Conrad is at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and an author of the new study.
So we had 80% of participants opting to the detox.
Participants cut down their social media use to about 30 minutes a day.
It was enough to reduce symptoms of anxiety by 16 percent and insomnia by 14 percent.
So we had 80% of participants opting to the detox.
41% of adults surveyed said they expect more holiday-related stress compared to the year before.
That's significantly higher than the 28% who said the same thing in 2024.
The good news is that more people, 44%, said that the holidays have a positive impact on their mental health in 2025 compared to 38% last year.
Among the reasons for anticipating holiday-related stress, nearly half cited grief or missing someone as well as worries about affording holiday gifts.