Messages about depression and anxiety appear more persuasive than simple reminders to take a break.
STANFORD, CALIFORNIA
Health warnings displayed on social-media platforms could discourage teenagers and young adults from using them, according to a Stanford Medicine-led study published in JAMA Health Forum. Researchers tested 15 messages with 1,012 participants in the United States between the ages of 13 and 29. Approximately half were adolescents and half were young adults.
The warnings addressed addiction, negative body image, sleep disruption, depression, anxiety and broader mental-health risks. Participants viewed them in random order on a simulated Instagram page and rated whether each message increased their awareness of potential harm or reduced their desire to use social media. A neutral message about seat-belt safety served as the control.
Warnings discussing general mental-health harm, depression and anxiety received the strongest responses. Nearly every health-focused message was judged more persuasive than a simple screen-time reminder resembling those already used voluntarily by some platforms. Teenagers and young adults responded in broadly similar ways, despite researchers initially expecting differences between the two age groups.
The study supports growing political interest in treating social-media warnings similarly to those placed on tobacco and alcohol. California, Colorado, Minnesota and New York have adopted warning requirements, while other states have considered related legislation. California’s measure is scheduled to take effect in January 2027, although technology companies are challenging such laws and their implementation remains contested.
However, the experiment measured participants’ stated intentions and awareness, not whether they subsequently reduced their actual screen time. The researchers therefore cannot yet conclude that warning pop-ups change long-term behaviour or improve mental health. Larger real-world studies must determine whether repeated messages remain effective or eventually become easy to ignore. Warning labels may offer a relatively inexpensive intervention, but they cannot substitute for safer platform design, transparent algorithms, parental guidance and stronger digital literacy.
Detrás de cada dato, la intención. / Behind every data point, the intention.