Health
Excessive phone and screen use tied to manic symptoms for one group, study finds
A recent study from the University of California, San Francisco, indicates that pre-teens with greater exposure to certain types of tech use could be at a higher risk of developing manic symptoms.
Published in the journal Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, the study analyzed a nationwide sample of 9,243 children in the U.S. between 10 and 11 years old.
Young people who spent more time engaged with social media, texting, videos and video games were more likely to have “inflated self-esteem, decreased need for sleep, distractibility, rapid speech, racing thoughts and impulsivity — behaviors characteristic of manic episodes, a key feature of bipolar-spectrum disorders,” a press release noted.
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“This study underscores the importance of cultivating healthy screen use habits early,” said co-author Kyle Ganson, PhD, assistant professor at the University of Toronto’s Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, in the release.
“Future research can help us better understand the behaviors and brain mechanisms linking screen use with manic symptoms to help inform prevention and intervention efforts.”
Excessive use of social media, texting, videos and video games by young people of certain ages was linked to a higher risk of mental health issues in a recent study. (Georgijevic/iStock)
Tips for safer use from experts
To mark the Global Day of Unplugging (March 7), Verizon hosted its first-ever “digital wellness summit” in New York City to share insights with the public about the safe use of technology.
Sowmyanarayan Sampath, CEO of Verizon Consumer Group, discussed the importance of setting digital boundaries, especially for kids.
“Digital wellness should be for every age, but really we need a new blueprint as parents, because we’ve never been through this before,” Sampath said at the event in the Big Apple.
“There is a healthier relationship people can have.”
“This digital age is new to us all. There’s no time in history we can reclaim how we handle that.”
In a separate interview with Fox News Digital, Sampath shared compelling statistics on phone use, including findings from Verizon’s 2024 Consumer Connections Report.
Kids and teenagers use social media for four to five hours a day and receive between 250 and 275 notifications daily, the report revealed.
Sowmyanarayan Sampath, CEO of Verizon Consumer Group, at right, is shown at the Verizon Digital Wellness Summit on March 6, 2025, in New York City. At left, actor and talk-show host Drew Barrymore. (Angelica Stabile/Fox News Digital)
Kids were also found to touch and pick up their phones about 150 times per day.
A quarter of these events occurred during school hours.
“This is what sparked us to think there is a healthier relationship people can have,” Sampath said.
Tech’s impact on kids
Dr. Keneisha Sinclair-McBride, attending psychologist at Boston’s Children’s Hospital and an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, also spoke at a panel at the Verizon event and in a follow-up interview with Fox News Digital.
The expert noted that kids spending “hours and hours” of their free time on their phones can be “problematic,” especially considering the possibility that they’ll experience threats such as cyberbullying and hate speech.
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“We know that these are associated with depressive symptoms and other mental health concerns,” she said.
“We also know that there’s so much positive for social connection, learning and fun, so we have to balance those two things.”
She pointed out that some social media apps are “designed to keep you stuck” through the loop of an algorithm.
Socializing with others can have a positive impact on kids’ moods, experts suggested. (iStock)
This problematic use can lead to poorer functioning at work or school and can negatively impact sleep and relationships, Sinclair-McBride warned.
“Are they able to live their life and do the things they want and need to do in a positive way? If there are concerns in any of those areas, that’s usually a sign of something needing to be reassessed.”
Prompts for parents, grandparents
Sinclair-McBride encouraged parents and grandparents to learn about the apps children are using and teach them to be “critical consumers” of content by training them to detect scams, misinformation or AI-generated content.
“Slowing down and being more thoughtful and mindful about what you’re doing is, I think, the first step in modeling that as a parent,” she told Fox News Digital.
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“Parents can also look at their own use and [ask], ‘Am I on my phone too much? Am I too addicted to social media?’”
The CEO also urged adults to set boundaries involving phone use, whether it’s limited to certain spaces in the home or specific times of day.
“When you do things in real life, you feel happier.” (iStock)
‘Create space to have fun’
Sampath shared simple advice for families to ensure a healthy balance between tech use and unplugged activities.
“Go for a movie. Go for a walk. Go and play a game or just hang out with friends. Or just hang out with your family in your kitchen and do fun things,” he suggested.
“I think kids are going to have to be comfortable sometimes doing nothing … reading a book, just hanging out,” he said.
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“Kids are going to have to get way more comfortable doing that – that’s part of a healthy boundary, and it’s part of a good relationship with technology.”
Sampath also encouraged Americans to take advantage of living in areas with “some of the best weather” and “the best natural sights in the world” by exploring outdoor spaces and moving more.
“The time that people spend with digital technology needs to be balanced with real-life stuff, whether it’s sports, the arts, creative activities, reading or actual hands-on, tangible things.” (iStock)
“You want to create space to have fun. You want to create space to play. You want to create space to have physical activity, to have real relationships,” he said.
“It has long-term benefits on mental health … When you do things in real life, you feel happier.”
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Sinclair-McBride echoed the advice to get outside and “touch grass.”
“The time that people spend with digital technology needs to be balanced with real-life stuff, whether it’s sports, the arts, creative activities, reading or actual hands-on, tangible things,” she said.
Experts advocated for kids to be given more time to explore tangible activities and hobbies instead of defaulting to digital. (iStock)
“I think people are in this mindset that this generation only wants to do digital, digital, digital,” she added.
“They still like other stuff, too. We have to give them options, space and freedom to have that time.”
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Journalist Katie Couric is sharing a scary medical episode that she experienced on June 27.
In a post on Substack titled “The Day I’ll Never Remember,” she detailed a sudden episode that left her unable to recall the current month, year and president.
“I thought it was 2024. And I believed Joe Biden was president,” she wrote.
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The event occurred while Couric was attending the Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado, during which she participated in two public panels — one on AI and one on journalism — both of which she cannot remember at all.
“I have no idea what we talked about, or of what occurred when the panels ended,” she said.
Journalist Katie Couric is sharing a scary medical episode that she experienced on June 27. (Getty Images)
John Molner — Couric’s husband, who was in attendance at the festival and the two panels — also shared his account.
After the event, someone told Molner that Katie wasn’t feeling well. When he reached her, an EMT and a doctor were tending to her. “I could tell something was off,” he wrote. “It could have been altitude sickness, but Katie was definitely not all there.”
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At the hospital, when Couric struggled to recall the year, the president and her grandchildren’s names, doctors began checking for a stroke.
An MRI revealed no signs of stroke, which was a relief, but “Katie’s ‘fog’ became a lot more apparent,” Molner wrote.
John Molner, Couric’s husband, who was in attendance at the festival and the two panels, also shared his account. (Getty Images)
“She repeatedly asked me the same questions: ‘What was I doing before we got to the hospital?’ ‘Why am I at the hospital?’”
Couric was ultimately diagnosed with transient global amnesia, a sudden, temporary episode of memory loss that prevents a person from forming new memories and may also erase some recent memories, according to Mayo Clinic.
“The cause seems to be as mysterious as the brain itself.”
It is not caused by a stroke, seizure or head injury, and it usually resolves completely within 24 hours.
“[It’s] just a very weird neural episode that’s pretty uncommon and, at least in most cases, is a ‘one and done’ experience,” Molner said.
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Couric said she finally began feeling “like herself” again around 9 p.m. and went to sleep at 2 a.m.
As TGA leaves a “permanent gap in memory” for the duration of the episode and for hours beforehand, Couric said that from around noon on that day until at least 7 p.m. will remain a “big, black hole.”
As TGA leaves a “permanent gap in memory” for the duration of the episode and for hours beforehand, Couric said that from around noon on that day until at least 7 p.m. will remain a “big, black hole.” (Getty Images)
Data shows that approximately three to eight people per 100,000 will have an episode of transient global amnesia, with people 50 years of age and older at higher risk.
The specific cause of TGA is not known, but some experts believe it stems from a “temporary dysfunction in the brain’s hippocampus — the area responsible for creating new memories,” Couric shared.
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“Doctors believe this is driven by brief interruptions in blood or oxygen flow, or microscopic spasm in the blood vessels.”
Episodes could potentially be triggered by intense physical exertion, emotional distress, extreme temperature changes or migraines, experts say.
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Approximately 15% of patients will have a recurrence 10 years later.
“Why did this happen to me? Was the altitude an issue? Was I dehydrated? Tired? Stressed? The literature doesn’t seem to indicate that these are contributing factors, but the cause seems to be as mysterious as the brain itself,” Couric wrote.
Anyone who experiences sudden memory loss, confusion, difficulty speaking, weakness, numbness, vision changes, severe headache or other stroke-like symptoms should seek immediate medical attention or call 911, doctors advise. (iStock)
“All I know is that those hours will be forever lost. Someone described it as my brain failing to hit the ‘record button.’”
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“While this was a freaky occurrence, it could have been much more serious. So ultimately, I’m relieved — even though several hours of a Saturday in June will always be missing for me.”
Anyone who experiences sudden memory loss, confusion, difficulty speaking, weakness, numbness, vision changes, severe headache or other stroke-like symptoms should seek immediate medical attention or call 911, doctors advise.
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Older adults identified as “super movers” are about half as likely to develop cognitive impairment than their peers.
That’s according to a recent study led by Stony Brook Medicine in New York, which evaluated the cognitive function of 4,000 adults 80 and over who participated in multiple aging and longevity studies over several years.
Among this group, 6% to 10% were classified as super movers, which means they walk at a much faster pace than others of the same age and gender — at speeds comparable to people three decades younger.
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The super movers were found to have about half the risk of cognitive decline compared to seniors with typical gait speed.
The findings were published in the journal Neurology on June 16.
Older adults identified as “super movers” are about half as likely to develop cognitive impairment than their peers. (iStock)
“The study reinforces that mobility and brain health are closely connected,” lead study author Dr. Joe Verghese, MD, neurologist at Stony Brook Medicine, told Fox News Digital. “This suggests that preserving mobility may be an important marker of healthy brain aging and resilience.”
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The most intriguing finding, according to Verghese, was that super movers maintained cognitive function despite having similar dementia-related brain changes as their peers.
In postmortem brain analysis, there was no difference in dementia-related pathologies between the super movers and the slower walkers, the study stated.
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“This suggests they may possess resilience mechanisms that help preserve brain function even in the presence of age-related changes,” he said. “Understanding these resilience factors could lead to new strategies for promoting healthy brain aging.”
As the study was observational, there were some limitations, and it does not prove that walking faster prevents dementia, the researchers noted.
Super movers were found to have about half the risk of cognitive decline compared to seniors with typical gait speed. (iStock)
“Other factors, such as cardiovascular health, physical fitness or genetics, may also contribute to both faster walking and better cognitive outcomes,” Verghese said.
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This study adds to growing evidence that what’s good for the heart and muscles also benefits the brain, he noted, adding that “staying physically active remains one of the most effective, evidence-based ways to support healthy aging.”
“Walking speed is best viewed as a marker of overall health, not a treatment.”
“The broader message is that physical activity is important at any age,” Verghese said. “Walking is an easy step-up point because you don’t need any special equipment. You can do it inside or outdoors, and you can do it on a regular basis. You can walk with a dog, you can walk with a friend.”
Any activity is beneficial if it’s done regularly and with the right intensity, he added.
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Rather than just trying to walk faster, the neurologist recommends that seniors focus on maintaining mobility through regular physical activity, strength training, balance exercises and good cardiovascular health.
“Walking speed is best viewed as a marker of overall health, not a treatment,” Verghese noted.
Major public health guidelines from the CDC and U.S. Physical Activity Guidelines recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity each week, such as brisk walking.
Major public health guidelines from the CDC and U.S. Physical Activity Guidelines recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity each week, such as brisk walking. (iStock)
This can be achieved by walking 30 minutes a day, five days a week, or about 20 to 25 minutes most days. Another option is to engage in shorter sessions that add up over the day.
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“You have to do it within your health limitations and medical conditions,” Verghese advised. “So if there are any medical concerns, I would get your physician to clear you before starting exercise.” The good thing about walking, he added, is that you can start at a slow pace and then gradually build up to a brisker pace.
“And then adding on strength and balance training, whatever age you are, I think is also important.”
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