Instagram is the most detrimental social media platform to young people’s mental health, according to new research out of the U.K.

Researchers from the Royal Society for Public Health in conjunction with the Young Health Movement published the report which looks at the positive and negative effects of social media on young people’s health and well-being.

Snapchat ranked the second worst for mental health of the sites reviewed in the report, followed by Facebook. On the plus side, YouTube topped the list as the most positive, with Twitter coming in after it.

The researchers surveyed almost 1,500 teens and young people aged 14 to 24 from across the U.K. to score how each of the social media platforms they use impacts 14 specific factors related to their health and well-being.

These included emotional support, depression, body image, loneliness, sleep, self-expression, self-identity, community building, and bullying among others.

Social media is far more prevalent in younger generations and many young people have never known a world without instant access to the internet and social media platforms.

A number of studies in recent years have raised concerns about the potential health effects of frequent social media use on young people, particularly when it comes to mental health.

While the researchers acknowledge there is still much to be learned about social media’s impact on mental health, they say these are important conversations that need to be further explored, especially surrounding young people who are the most vulnerable to potential harms.

The report also discusses ways to reduce the risks and calls for action from government and social media companies to help promote positive aspects of social media.
These recommendations include:

A pop-up “heavy usage warning” on social media – 7 in 10 young people surveyed supported the idea of getting an alert if they exceed a set level of usage on a site.

Spotting troubled users – 4 out of 5 supported social media platforms identifying users who could be suffering from mental health problems by their posts, and discretely signposting ways for them to get support.

Pointing out photo manipulations – more than two-thirds of the young people surveyed believe social media platforms should highlight when photos of people have been digitally manipulated.