Surgeon General warns screens harm kids’ wellbeing

The U.S. Surgeon General’s office issued an advisory warning that extended screen use can harm children’s mental wellbeing and academic and physical outcomes. Led by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the guidance urges schools to curb

For the third time in a week, the bell rings and phones stay in hands. At some point during passing periods or lunch. a classroom that started with focus turns into a string of distractions—eyes flicking down. attention breaking into pieces. It is exactly that kind of reality the U.S. Surgeon General’s office is trying to confront with a new advisory that warns extended screen use can damage children’s academic performance. physical health. and mental wellbeing.

The advisory was issued yesterday. as schools across the country continue to wrestle with the aftereffects of the pandemic era—when many districts rolled out 1-to-1 device ratios. Now, educators and families say the same years brought mounting concerns about student attention, behavior, and mental health.

In an opening letter, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. urged children to pursue “a broader world. beyond the confines of screens.” The advisory comes with another layer of urgency: the role of U.S. surgeon general had been vacant since January 2025. Even so, the advisory was issued by a committee led by Kennedy Jr.

The core message is stark: excessive time in front of devices such as smartphones and tablets can worsen mental health and academic outcomes. The advisory also challenges tech firms to change how their products are designed.

It lands with a practical set of school actions. The report urges schools to use plans that many districts have already begun adopting or considering. That includes bell-to-bell cellphone bans. or rules that do not allow phones during the entirety of the school day. including passing periods and lunchtime. It also proposes screen time limits.

One of the most contested parts involves exceptions. The advisory specifies that screen time limit exceptions should be made for students who have individualized education programs or other needs for assistive devices—an approach that disability advocates have expressed worry about. The tension is clear: guidance aimed at reducing harm must not unintentionally widen gaps for students who rely on technology for access and support.

The advisory also asks schools to shift beyond restrictions and into teaching. Alongside offering students social and physical activities that don’t involve screens, it urges schools to teach digital citizenship and digital literacy.

It does not stop at classroom policies, either. The report pushes back against tech companies—especially those that have built systems meant to keep users engaged. It points to recent legal pressure in California, where tech companies recently lost a civil case over social media addiction. In the advisory. tech firms are called on to eschew designing apps for engagement in favor of user well-being. including adding warnings about harmful screen use every time a user opens the app.

The guidance also calls for companies to encourage children to socialize with friends and play outside, and to get rid of features such as recommendation algorithms and notifications.

Still. some education and mental health voices caution against treating the relationship between screens and wellbeing as a simple cause-and-effect story. Whitney Raglin Bignall. associate clinical director of The Kids Mental Health Foundation. tells EdSurge that research has found a correlation between screen time and poor mental health. but there is not yet cause-and-effect evidence.

She describes how it might look in real life: “There might be kids who need less [screen time]. or those who are doing lots of different types of things with that content that’s interactive that is not harmful. ” Raglin Bignall says. “Nevertheless, it should be monitored. By doing that. we make sure that we’re not doing too much [with screens]. and that whatever we are doing is beneficial.”.

Teachers. in her view. can watch for signs that screen use has slipped past what a student can handle—students being distracted. not listening. being irritable. or struggling to be away from screens. She adds that fatigue or lack of sleep among students may also show up when screen time has stretched too far. She says screen time should be especially monitored for children who have attention or hyperactivity disorders.

Another key distinction in the guidance is that not all screen time—or content—is equal. Raglin Bignall says teachers don’t need to rush to boot quality. evidence-based education apps as a replacement for everything else. The warning is aimed more sharply at harmful online behavior, including bullying and gambling. The advisory claims that content children encounter on these platforms can encourage risky behaviors like self-harm and substance use. or put children on the path of exploitative strangers.

The foundation’s associate clinical director draws a line between blanket condemnation and careful oversight. Good content, in her telling, is educational, slow-paced, and isn’t trying to market products. Adults. she argues. should pay special attention to what teens and tweens see online—particularly because children who struggle with confidence could be vulnerable to harmful content like accounts that promote eating disorders.

Her advice is also about how adults intervene. “I wouldn’t want to make it seem that all screen time is bad,” Raglin Bignall says. “I often recommend co-watching with adults during those younger ages. As kids get older. it’s still important for adults to monitor the level of content and what is being offered to them.”.

What emerges from the advisory—and from the pushback it has already invited—is a question schools are now being asked to answer quickly: how do you reduce the risks of devices without stripping students and families of tools they may need for learning. support. and accessibility?. The report’s proposed solutions—phone-free school days. screen time limits with IEP and assistive-device exceptions. digital citizenship lessons. and fewer screen-based social and physical activities—attempt to draw that line in policy. The debate now shifts to execution. and to whether the rules can be strict enough to protect children while still flexible enough to account for individual needs.

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