Last month, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy announced plans for placing warning labels on social media platforms. (This requires Congressional approval.) The warning message he proposes is that social media is associated with significant mental health problems in adolescents.

Dr. Murthy’s warning doesn’t come out of the blue. Last year, his office issued a rigorously researched 25-page advisory titled “Social Media and Youth Mental Health.” The takeaways from the advisory were frightening and convincing. Much of the evidence he cited concerns higher risks of depression, anxiety, loneliness, and body image issues, especially among heavy users of social media.

Regarding eating disorders specifically, the 2023 report says: “A synthesis of 20 studies demonstrated a significant relationship between social media use and body image concerns and eating disorders.” The advisory mentions the rampant social comparison that happens on the platforms, including the infamous “likes” and “dislikes” that can be so destructive to the mental health of adolescents.

For me, as the chief medical officer for an eating disorder program and a substance use disorder clinic, it’s the eating disorder and substance use risks of social media that stand out most.

A key piece of damning evidence cited in the advisory was a recent study of 6,595 adolescents.........

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