 social media use among youth. Namely, when adolescents are using three hours or more a day of social media, that is associated with a doubling of risk of anxiety and depression symptoms. But it goes beyond that. If we look at what young people are telling us themselves, in surveys, more than half of adolescents are saying using social media is making them feel worse about their body image. A third of adolescents are saying they feel addicted to social media and they can't get off even if they want to.