Why Facebook May Be Harmful To Your Health

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Facebook, the social platform that’s turned oversharing into a cultural right, is negatively affecting your mental health and well-being, according to scientific research.

Whether you use Facebook to check up on your friends, compare yourself to your enemies, read the trending news, or keep track of birthdays you’d otherwise forget, research shows that being active on the site is hurting us in more ways than one.

In a study of 5,028 Facebook users from 2013 to 2015, researchers found that Facebook activity was linked to lower physical and mental health, life satisfaction, body mass index, and overall well-being. A single standard deviation increase in behaviors such as “liking” others’ content, clicking links posted to Facebook, and updating one’s own Facebook status was linked to a 5 to 8 percent of a standard deviation in self-reported mental health. In general, people who posted more often reported worse mental health than those who posted less often, and subjects who “liked” more content were similarly worse off than those who “liked” less. Related research has also linked Facebook use to a greater risk of eating disorders and depression, especially amongst young users.

Essentially, the more active a subject was on Facebook, the lower they scored on measures of health and happiness, signaling an undesirable tradeoff between online and offline relationships.

What does that mean for you? You don’t need to cut Facebook out of your life entirely, but do focus the majority of your socializing on real-life interactions. You’ll be much happier that way.