Teenagers are drinking and smoking less than previous generations, are taking fewer illegal drugs, and are less likely to fall pregnant. Good news!
But according to a British Government paper, they are also increasingly prone to self-harm: a third of 15-year-old girls are believed to have deliberately hurt themselves. Many teens suffer from a chronic lack of sleep and get alarmingly little exercise (because school sports grounds have been sold off). In 2012, the proportion of teenage boys taking the recommended amount of exercise was 21%, down from 28% in 2008. There has also been a rise in cyber-bullying, and teenagers are increasingly exposed to pro-anorexia and self-harm websites.
Is Facebook a culprit? Young girls feel they have to put a photo of themselves on their Facebook page. If the photo isn’t flattering they are in danger of being bullied and having their self-confidence sapped; and if she is pretty she can get inappropriate (in my language, disgusting) suggestions thrown at her. If we are not careful we will go down the South American route, where women are once again judged solely on looks, figure and dress, and no woman is expected to be intelligent, capable or funny (I have heard this point, mainly from Brazilians). It takes character to fight against a culture such as this.
“Social media breeds insecurity and a desperate wish to be liked”. (Lucy Mangan, The Guardian). Is this fair?
As an 18 year old Brit who uses Facebook regularly, I think I can speak with some authority on this one. Firstly, it is highly unusual for a girl to feel anxiety over her profile picture. The vast majority of girls simply put what they think is nice, regardless of the number of ‘likes’ it receives. Some choose to post photos very often, while others simply on other people to upload photos for them. It’s purely a matter of personal preference, and no boy I know would be cruel enough to criticise a girl’s photo, or at least express their disapproval in front of her. While girls are more often judged on their looks, for the most part, its because they choose to be. Girls want to look good, to a far greater extent than boys do.
As for teenagers generally, its true that there’s been a rise in the number of those suffering from mental health issues. But part of that is because we are more able/willing to diagnose people nowadays. More people are referred to therapy. It’s also become unfashionable to expect people to ‘man up’ and deal with their problems themselves. Instead, people have been encouraged to get as much help as they can, even when no one but themselves can change anything.
Finally, I don’t remember anyone suffering from issues related to a lack of exercise at school. We did PE regularly, and many people were part of clubs and sports events outside of school. I think childhood obesity is actually largely a non issue. And when it does occcur, it is more due to personal choices such excessive eating and drinking, than a lack of funding for schools.