Mount Sinai South Nassau ‘Truth in Medicine’ Poll: Parents Strongly Support School Ban on Cell Phone Use and a Crackdown on Social Media Companies

85 percent support state laws limiting social media feeds for minors; Children average 3.41 hours on social media apps on their phones

Parents in the metro area strongly support a ban on cell phone use in schools and agree that social media companies should do more to limit children’s use of social media apps, according to the latest Mount Sinai South Nassau Truth in Medicine poll. An overwhelming majority—85 percent of parents polled—support state laws limiting social media feeds for minors. Eighty-two percent agree that social media companies should do more to limit children’s use of their apps.

Most parents (72 percent) want their child to have a cell phone at school in case of an emergency, but 77 percent of the parents polled say they also support a ban on cell phone use in schools during the day.

Concern about overuse of social media is not limited to children. Nearly a third of those polled agree that they also spend too much time on social media on their cell phones. Some 16 percent of adults admit that they may be addicted to their cell phones, although most did not believe it was harming their relationships.

A strong 68 percent of parents believe parental controls for their children’s social media use are effective. Asked to estimate their children’s use of social media apps, 27 percent say their children spend up to two hours per day on social media apps; 34 percent say they spend between three and four hours; 16 percent say five or more hours per day; and a noteworthy 23 percent are not sure.

The issue of cell phone use in schools has been a hot topic as students return to class this month across the New York region.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul is pushing for a ban on internet access on students’ cellphones when they are in classes, while Assemblyman Keith Brown of Commack has introduced a bill prohibiting students from possessing their cellphones during classroom instruction. Many school districts across the state, including Hempstead, New York, have taken matters into their own hands, banning or placing restrictions on students’ cell phone use within their schools. In June, Governor Hochul signed into law two bills that target addictive social media apps and regulate social media algorithms. The bills made New York State the first in the nation to pass laws regulating social media algorithms.

“Excessive screen time and social media use can have detrimental effects on the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of children and adults,” said Adhi Sharma, MD, President of Mount Sinai South Nassau. “The home and school are crucial environments where we can mitigate these risks and establish guidelines that foster creative, productive, and socially constructive use of screen time while emphasizing hobbies, indoor and outdoor pursuits, and face-to-face interactions.”

Results of the latest Truth in Medicine poll, sponsored by Bethpage Federal Credit Union, were released at a panel discussion and media briefing at Optimum’s Bethpage headquarters where leading academic and medical experts reviewed the poll’s findings. Optimum agreed to host the event with the support of the Long Island Association as part of their community outreach efforts.

Other key findings of the Truth in Medicine poll include:

• 99 percent of respondents have a cell phone or smart phone.
  
• 58 percent of parents report that at least one of their children has a cell phone or smart phone.
  
• A plurality of parents whose kids have a phone say they use all the social media apps listed. YouTube is the most used, followed by Snapchat and TikTok, which are tied for second place.
  
• 73 percent of parents agree that the schools their children attend are safe. 90 percent of parents with kids aged 6-10 believe their children’s schools are safe, compared to 75 percent of parents with kids aged 0-5, 70 percent of parents with kids aged 11-13, and 65 percent of parents with kids aged 14-17.
  

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends limiting screen time to one hour per day for children 2-5 years old and two hours for children 6-17 years old, for uses not related to school or work. While one size does not fit all, it is important to discuss screen time with older children and monitor it afterward.

Another red flag is that parents may underestimate or are unaware of the harmful impact that excessive social media use may have or is having on their children. According to the survey, only a slim majority of parents—53 percent—are concerned about the estimated three or more hours per day their children spend on social media apps while only 25 percent of parents whose children have cell phones agree that their children’s social media use is having a negative impact on their mental health.

The Truth in Medicine poll, sponsored by Bethpage Federal Credit Union, aims to gather data about public attitudes on key public health topics and spur education and discussion. This poll was conducted from August 1-5, 2024, via both landlines and cell phones with 600 Long Island and New York City parents who have at least one child under the age of 18. Poll findings are subject to a sampling error of plus or minus 3.9 percent.

A study of U.S. children aged 12-15 referenced in the 2023 U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory “Social Media and Youth Mental Health” found that teens who spent more than three hours per day on social media faced double the risk of poor mental health, including depression and anxiety. The advisory also pointed out that when 13-17-year-olds were asked about the impact of social media on their body image, 46 percent said social media makes them feel worse, 40 percent said it makes them feel neither better nor worse, and only 14 percent said it makes them feel better.

“An array of studies show that excessive social media use can be a distraction to parents, reducing their engagement with their children and impacting effective communication between parent and child,” says Aaron E. Glatt, MD, Chair of the Department of Medicine at Mount Sinai South Nassau. “As a result, their children pick up on their habits, which exacerbate many of the harmful and dangerous issues presented by inappropriate and abusive use of social media platforms.”

Parents are also at risk of developing mental health problems, he adds, feeling peer pressure to live up to unrealistic parenting standards due to constant exposure to curated posts and images.

Only 31 percent agree that they spend too much time on social media on their cell phones while 65 percent disagree. Just over half—52 percent—of parents who admit to using social media five or more hours per day suggest they may be spending too much time on their phone. Of those parents who are active on social networks five-plus hours per day, one-third of them say they may be addicted to their phone. Overall, 16 percent of parents surveyed say they may be addicted to their phone.
What may be of greatest concern is that just nine percent of those parents who spend five-plus hours per day on their phones feel that their phone usage has hurt their relationships.

Lincoln Ferguson, MD, Chair of Pediatrics, says a family media plan is an effective starting point to manage parents’ and children’s time on mobile devices (and computers) for purely social media, gaming, and entertainment purposes.

Based on recommendations by the American Academy of Pediatrics, Dr. Ferguson believes the plan should include:

• One hour daily of physical activity
  
• 8-12 hours of sleep, depending on age
  
• A ban on use of devices or screens one hour before bedtime
  
• Media-free homework time, family time (such as dinner, family outings, and other activities), and locations in the home (including the kitchen, dining room, and/or bedrooms)
  

“Throughout its extensive and admirable tradition of excellence in health care, Mount Sinai South Nassau has taken every action necessary to advance the overall health, wellness, and quality of life of the communities it serves,” said Linda Armyn, President of Bethpage Federal Credit Union. “We are pleased to be a partner with them in their mission by sponsoring this poll which provides practical, insightful, and actionable health education and awareness.”

This is Mount Sinai South Nassau’s 19th “Truth in Medicine” poll and the second of 2024. The poll seeks to evaluate public knowledge and sentiment toward key public health issues. The poll is a component of Mount Sinai South Nassau’s mission of improving education around critical public health issues. The poll was conducted by a nationally recognized, independent polling firm, LJR Custom Strategies, with offices in Washington, DC, and New Orleans. LJR has conducted more than 2,000 studies for a broad spectrum of health care, business, education, cultural, and political clients in nearly every state in the country and around the world.

Mount Sinai South Nassau began conducting the public health poll in January 2017. Previous polls have focused on mental health services, holiday stress, the human papilloma virus vaccine, legalization of recreational marijuana, supplements, antibiotic use and misuse, and screen time, among others. For more information about the polls, visit www.southnassau.org/sn/truth-in-medicine.

About Mount Sinai South Nassau
The Long Island flagship hospital of the Mount Sinai Health System, Mount Sinai South Nassau is designated a Magnet® hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) for outstanding nursing care. Mount Sinai South Nassau is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 455 beds, more than nine hundred physicians and 3,500 employees. Located in Oceanside, New York, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health, and emergency services and operates the only Trauma Center on the South Shore of Nassau County, along with Long Island’s only free-standing Emergency Department in Long Beach.

In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, Mount Sinai South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty, and offers Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® radiosurgery technologies. Mount Sinai South Nassau operates the only Trauma Center on the South Shore of Nassau County verified by the American College of Surgeons as well as Long Island’s only free-standing, 9-1-1 receiving Emergency Department in Long Beach. Mount Sinai South Nassau also is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons; is an accredited center of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Association and Quality Improvement Program; and an Infectious Diseases Society of America Antimicrobial Stewardship Center of Excellence.
For more information, go to www.mountsinai.org/southnassau.

"Truth In Medicine" Poll Results (PDF)

Media Links

NBC News (Cell phone ban in schools? How Long Island parents weighed in.)
CBS News (Cellphone use in schools and social media must be limited, new poll says. Here's a Long Island district's approach.)
News 12 (Truth in Medicine poll looks at cellphone use and social media usage by kids.)