Brief social media breaks may ease stress and boost well-being in college youth

Photo by Mariia Shalabaieva / Unsplash

medRxiv Published June 3, 2026 Medically reviewed June 3, 2026 Study authors: Lopes, M. V. V.; Branje, K.; David, A.; Gennara, A.; Haidt, J.; Rausch, Z.; Greb, N.; Aslam, A.; Leb… DOI ↗ By Dr. Ji-eun Park, MD · Brain, Mind & Pain

Key Takeaway

Short social media breaks can reduce stress and improve well-being in college youth with minimal risk.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of experiments examined the mental health effects of restricting social media use for at least 24 hours among college-aged youth. The analysis pooled data from 7,160 participants, comparing them to unconstrained control conditions over one to three weeks of follow-up.

The primary outcomes included depressive symptoms, perceived stress, anxiety, fear of missing out, and overall well-being. Results showed beneficial responses across all measures, with effect sizes ranging from small to moderate. Depressive symptoms improved with an effect size of g = 0.22, while perceived stress and anxiety showed gains of g = 0.15 and g = 0.19, respectively.

Fear of missing out and nomophobia decreased with an effect size of g = 0.14, and well-being saw the largest improvement at g = 0.36. All confidence intervals were above zero, indicating consistent benefits. No evidence of harm was reported, and tolerability was acceptable.

Limitations include substantial heterogeneity for several outcomes, which may affect generalizability. However, the experimental design supports a causal link between social media use and mental health. These findings suggest that brief, low-cost social media restrictions could be a scalable strategy to support mental health in young adults.

In practice, clinicians might consider advising college students to take short breaks from social media to improve mood and reduce stress. This approach aligns with public health efforts to promote digital well-being without requiring intensive interventions.

Study Details

Study typeRct

Sample sizen = 7,160

EvidenceLevel 2

PublishedJun 2026

View Original Abstract ↓

Background: Observational studies have consistently reported associations between social media use (SMU) and poorer mental health outcomes; however, such designs cannot establish causality. This study synthesised evidence from randomized experiments to estimate the effects of restricting SMU on mental health outcomes. Methods: A systematic search was conducted across MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, and Cochrane CENTRAL to identify experimental trials evaluating interventions that constrained SMU for at least 24 hours and included an unconstrained control condition. Multilevel random-effects meta-analyses were used to synthesise effect estimates. Prespecified meta-regressions explored study-level moderators, and population-level impact fractions were estimated relative to global SMU prevalence. Results: From 7,784 screened records, 37 reports representing 35 distinct studies were included (pooled N = 7,160). Most interventions lasted one to three weeks and targeted college-aged youth. Pooled estimates favoured SMU constraints across outcomes, with magnitude and precision varying by domain. Confidence intervals were entirely above zero, consistent with a beneficial response for depressive symptoms (g = 0.22; 95% CI, 0.12 to 0.32), perceived stress (g = 0.15; 95% CI, 0.01 to 0.29), anxiety symptoms (g = 0.19; 95% CI, 0.05 to 0.34), fear of missing out/nomophobia (g = 0.14; 95% CI, 0.04 to 0.24), and well-being (g = 0.36; 95% CI, 0.10 to 0.63). Heterogeneity was substantial for several outcomes (I2 > 75%). In bivariate meta-regressions, higher baseline SMU was associated with larger effects for anxiety symptoms ({beta} = 0.13; 95% CI, 0.03 to 0.22), and longer interventions were associated with larger effects for depressive symptoms ({beta} = 0.16; 95% CI, 0.02 to 0.30). Inferences revealed that a short-term reduction in SMU globally could plausibly mitigate 17.5% and 15.4% of depressive and anxiety symptom cases, respectively. Conclusions: Experimental design-based evidence supports the causal case for an effect of SMU on mental health, with constraints producing improvements across multiple outcomes and no evidence of harm. Population-level inferences suggest that even individually modest effects may translate into meaningful public health benefits given the high prevalence of SMU exposure. These findings suggest that reducing SMU may represent a low-intensity, low-cost, scalable strategy to support mental health and improve well-being.