Adolescents connected Internet alone (59%), consulting social media, mostly Instagram (72%), TikTok (62%), and YouTube (58%). In particular, the majority of adolescents (59%) admitted they use smartphone even more frequently than in the past with a daily use of more than 3 h in 46% of cases. In line, a 2021 CENSIS report revealed an even progressive increment of smartphone use by adolescents, which reached 95%. From the beginning of the pandemic period, media device and Internet access rapidly increased. In 2020, COVID-19 pandemic represented one of the greatest disruptions for everybody’s everyday life, in Italy as well as all around the world. Internet connection was mostly used to communicate with friends and to use social networks. Almost 95% of Italian families with a child had a broadband internet connection. An ISTAT report referred that in 2019, 85.8% of Italian adolescents aged 11–17 years regularly used smartphones, and over 72% accessed Internet via smartphones.
Media device use is increasing year by year in Italy as well as in many other countries. Pediatricians should be aware of the risks associated to a problematic social media use for the young’s health and identify sentinel signs in children as well as prevent negative outcomes in accordance with the family. Public and medical awareness must rise over this topic and new prevention measures must be found, starting with health practitioners, caregivers, and websites/application developers. Other identified associated problems were sleep, addiction, anxiety, sex related issues, behavioral problems, body image, physical activity, online grooming, sight, headache, and dental caries. Out of them, 19 were dealing with depression, 15 with diet, and 15 with psychological problems, which appeared to be the most reported risk of social media use. Excluding articles not pertinent, we found 68 reports. The scoping review was performed according to PRISMA guidelines, searching on PubMed the terms “social media” or “social network”, “health”, and “pediatrics”. Aim of the review is to focus on risks correlated to social media use by children and adolescents, identifying spies of rising problems and engaging in preventive recommendations. However, we have to keep in mind that media usage may be related to some adverse consequences especially in the most vulnerable people, such as the young. During “lockdown”, the Internet usage allowed communication with peers and the continuity activities such as school teaching. Adolescents connected Internet alone, consulting social media, mostly Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. From the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic period, media device and Internet access rapidly increased. In recent years, social media has become part of our lives, even among children.
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