Social Media is part of everyday life for many young people, in fact Australians are one of the highest users spending an average 7 hours a month on Facebook and Twitter¹. But is this new way of communicating helping or hindering us?

Two recent studies look at it from 2 perspectives. One undertaken by the Sydney’s-Woolcock Institute and the Brain and Mind Research Institute found that young people who become sleep deprived by using the internet into the small hours are much more likely to become mentally ill in later life. Where as a study by the Mental Health Association NSW into friendship, social support, psychological distress and mental well-being patterns and trends in NSW,  showed that more than two-thirds of those surveyed found it difficult to make new friends, with many now turning to social media sites like Facebook to try to meet people.

So lets look at the sleep aspect first, the study showed that the lack of sleep may help explain the puzzling increase in mental illness among young people in recent decades. With staying up late to surf the internet and chat on social networking sites being one reason that young people are sleeping less.

The study of about 20,000 young people aged between 17 and 24 found that those who slept fewer than five hours a night were three times more likely than normal sleepers to become psychologically distressed in the next year.

Each hour of sleep lost was linked to a 14 per cent increased risk of distress, according to the results, published in the journal Sleep. With Professor Nicholas Glozier, who led the research, stating: ‘Sleep disturbance and in particular insomnia is a predictor of later development of depression and possibly anxiety.’

‘Many of these kids could have sleep problems as a result of previous disturbances,’ said Professor Glozier ‘But what we are seeing are young adults who tend to start off with anxiety and body-clock problems and move on to problems like bipolar or major depression.’

Are you spending enough time sleeping?

So the above study highlights that if you are using Facebook and Twitter, or any internet site the wee smal hour are not the best time as it is often in place of the all important zzzzzzz’s.

The other side of the Social Media coin was highlighted in a study by Mental Health Association NSW that revealed that people with some experience of mental illness are often socially isolated with few close friendships, and are increasingly using social media to meet people. It showed that more than two-thirds of those surveyed found it difficult to make new friends, with many now turning to social media sites like Facebook to try to meet people.

Nataly Bovopoulos, Mental Health Promotion Manager, Mental Health Association NSW, said that the study revealed that there was a concerning link between friendship and mental health. “More than 60 per cent of people surveyed, who have had a diagnosis of a mental illness such as depression or anxiety, say they have no one they can call a best friend. And 40 per cent would have trouble finding someone to drive them to the doctor if they were sick,” she said.

The study also showed the extensive use of social media, indicating that online communication may be replacing face-to-face contact for some people as they are finding it easier to meet like-minded people via Facebook. An overwhelming majority (96%) of 18-25 year olds use social networking sites, as opposed to 72 per cent of respondents overall.

While the advent of social media no doubt provides comfort for many people, Ms Bovopoulos also said that it was important to try to develop and maintain face-to-face friendships.

“We found that people who reported enjoying close, empathic, supportive, and caring friendships, who like and are interested in people, and who enjoy interacting with others for their own sake had higher psychological well-being, greater resilience, and lower psychological distress.”

But the face to face chat, can it be replaced?

A key finding of the study was that social media can be a useful tool for people to keep in touch with friends, and a much less confronting form of communication for some people, especially to make new friends. However, there is concern for vulnerable groups that social media could replace face-to-face relationships.

But what do you think. Is it a positive or negative in the forming and maintaining of relationships and our own mental health? Let us know, either share your story or leave us a comment.

To find our more information on the topic included in the blog visit our topic pages.

• Sleep
• Anxiety, Depression and Stress

1: http://www.whatsonxiamen.com/health1974.html

Tags: sleep, social media