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Do You Have a Healthy Digital Diet?
How Social Media Use Effects US Youth...
Hey TDG Family & Good Morning! 💪
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Must Read Article💡
We have all heard the saying “You are what you eat”.
What about “You are what you consume online”?
In this article by Thesalesblog.com, Anthony discusses the negativity found all over the internet, the effects it can have on our thoughts, and the importance of filtering what we consume online. Here are a couple of the main points.👇👇
Everything you ingest influences your mindset.
People you follow can influence you with their beliefs, opinions, and fears.
Media outlets focus on negative, fear-based content to retain viewership, which can harm your mindset.
Removing negative sources from your media diet and replacing them with positive ones can improve your mindset.
Last week I read a story that reported that in Europe, the news agencies’ reporting on COVID-19 was about fifty percent positive and fifty percent negative. There was good news and bad news, as one might expect. In the United States, the stories were ninety percent negative and ten percent positive. In polling data, a large part of the United States population believed that around fifty percent of the people infected with the virus were hospitalized. That number is ten times greater than the five percent who ended up in the hospital.
Parker’s Breakdown: Digital Diet 🔑
“When you choose who you follow on twitter, you are choosing your future thoughts” - James Clear
In today's digital age, our online consumption significantly shapes our thoughts, beliefs, and outlook on the world. The people we follow and the content we watch can alter our perceptions, often without us even realizing it.
Who you follow online shapes your future thoughts. Influencers, celebrities, and even friends' posts can subtly guide your beliefs and opinions. The videos you watch, the articles you read, and the discussions you engage in all contribute to forming your worldview.
Many people who regularly watch the news tend to develop a negative outlook on the world and the future. This is largely because news outlets often focus on dark, pessimistic stories and fear-mongering. The media business model is designed to capture and retain your attention, often by emphasizing sensational, negative content. This approach keeps viewers glued to their screens but at the expense of their mental health and overall outlook on life.
It's crucial to filter out content that agitates, shocks, scares, or divides you. Being aware of what you consume and how it affects you is the first step toward protecting your mindset. By setting up a preventative set of filters, you can avoid being consumed by negativity.
The Study 📖
This study was a longitudinal cohort analysis using data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study, which is a nationally representative survey of US adolescents. The researchers analyzed data from 6,595 adolescents aged 12-15 years at baseline, collected over three annual waves from 2013 to 2016. They examined the association between self-reported time spent on social media (measured at wave 2) and mental health problems (measured at wave 3) using the Global Appraisal of Individual Needs–Short Screener (GAIN-SS). The study used multinomial logistic regression to estimate the associations between social media use and internalizing problems, externalizing problems, and comorbid problems, while adjusting for various demographic and behavioral factors measured at wave 1. The researchers also calculated population-attributable fractions to estimate the potential impact of reducing social media use on mental health problems.
Here is what the cohort found and my observations:
Adolescents who used social media for more than 30 minutes per day had a higher risk of internalizing problems and comorbid internalizing and externalizing problems compared to non-users.
The risk of mental health problems increased proportionally with increased time spent on social media for internalizing and comorbid problems.
The study estimated that 9.4% of high internalizing problem cases and 7.3% of high externalizing problem cases could potentially be prevented if adolescents limited their social media use to 30 minutes or less per day.
The associations remained significant after adjusting for demographics, past substance use, and prior mental health problems.
The strong association between time spent on social media and mental health suggests that what teens are exposed to online may be influencing their thought patterns and emotional well-being.
The findings highlight the importance of being selective about who we follow and what content we consume online, as prolonged exposure to certain types of social media content may shape our thinking and mental state over time.
The study underscores the need for increased awareness about the potential mental health impacts of social media use, emphasizing the importance of mindful consumption and possibly setting limits on daily social media use.