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Cleveland Clinic psychologist reacts to Surgeon General's push to get warning labels on social media

'Without these safety mechanisms, it’s like putting a child in a car without a seat belt or any speed limits.'

CLEVELAND — It’s a story that has received a lot of national attention this week: The U.S. Surgeon General is calling for warning labels to be used on social media platforms.

He wants congressional approval to add a warning label -- similar to tobacco warnings -- but specific to kids.

3News talked with Dr. Susan Albers, a Cleveland Clinic psychologist, about why she thinks the warning is important.

“The warning labels are one piece of the puzzle,” Dr. Albers says. “At the moment, parents feel a tremendous amount of responsibility to navigate and help kids learn about social media. Without these safety mechanisms, it’s like putting a child in a car without a seat belt or any speed limits. This is going to help raise the awareness of parents that there are risks around social media.”

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 95 percent of teens ages 13 to 17 have social media – and more than a third say they use it “almost constantly.”

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