UCSF study links compulsive social‑media use to higher ADHD risk in U.S. teens

Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco followed more than 11,000 American adolescents from ages 12 to 16 over a five‑year period. The study, published in JAMA Network Open, found that adolescents who increased their compulsive use of social media showed a modest but statistically significant rise in ADHD symptoms a year later. The effect was driven almost entirely by males; no comparable association was observed for females.

The investigators attribute the relationship to the design of social‑media platforms, which promote rapid task switching, continuous novelty and immediate gratification, potentially overwhelming working memory and executive control. The authors caution parents to monitor screen habits, noting that around 7 million U.S. children and adolescents already carry an ADHD diagnosis according to CDC data.