Social networks--are they good for your health? The era of Facebook and Twitter

Abstract

Sir, Since its introduction in 2005, the social networking web site Facebook has grown at an unprecedented rate, to over 500 million active users. This and other networking web sites (e.g. Twitter and MySpace) have heralded a new era in how individuals socially interact. Indeed, in 2010 alone there were two major film productions (‘The Social Network’ and ‘Catfish’) highlighting the ever-growing fascination and popularity of social networking. However, despite the now ubiquitous use of social networking web sites, there has been little consideration as to how this use may impact human health. There is good reason to examine how social phenomena impact health. Having satisfying social interaction is an innate psychological need. Meeting our social needs produces vitality, whereas chronic social disconnectedness is pathophysiologically damaging, both in humans and animals.1–3 The effects are not dissimilar to that …