London: Teenage girls who spend more time on social media have a higher risk of depression than boys, a study has found.
Researchers led by Yvonne Kelly from the University College London (UCL) found that almost 40 per cent of girls who spend more than five hours a day on social media show symptoms of depression, news agency reported.
However, the rate is much lower for boys, which is less than 15 per cent.
According to Simon Wessely, former president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, the underlying processes of this phenomenon are not well understood.
The researchers “still cannot definitely say that social media
For the study, published in the journal
They found that two-fifths of girls have suffered online harassments or online bullying compared to one-quarter of boys.
Compared to 28 per cent of boys, 40 per cent of girls
Girls were found more likely to have low self-esteem and body weight