Washington:

In a new advisory released on Tuesday, US Surgeon General Dr Vivek Murthy said that gun violence in the country is an urgent public health crisis that demands the “collective commitment of the nation” to put an end to it, reported CNN.

This is the first Office of the Surgeon General publication that specifically addresses gun violence and its “deep consequences” for victims, communities, and mental health.

The US Department of Health and Human Services states that a surgeon general’s advice is usually used to highlight important public health issues.

The advise released on Tuesday outlines the terrible effects of gun violence in the US and provides information on how public health initiatives can be helpful.

Provisional data indicates that over 48,000 US citizens lost their lives as a result of firearm-related injuries in 2022 alone. Homicides, suicides, and accidental deaths were all included in that total. The recommendation states that the number of firearm-related deaths in the US has been increasing and will peak in 2021 at three decades, reported CNN.

According to the advice, since then, there has been a decline in gun-related killings but the number of gun-related suicides has remained relatively constant. The caution states that although mass shootings are still uncommon–they account for only 1 per cent of gun fatalities–the frequency of these events has been increasing.

The Surgeon General’s advisory underlined, how people of colour are “disproportionately impacted” by gun violence, reported CNN.

The recommendation states that firearm violence can have a negative impact on mental health in addition to the physical issues it can cause.

According to the advisory, youngsters are especially prone to fearing gun violence, with many of them believing that their school will be the scene of such carnage. It states that in order to understand how to lower and prevent firearm violence in the US, additional funding for guns research is required. Investments should be made with a focus on improving data gathering and preventative tactics, CNN reported.

The guideline calls on healthcare providers and communities to take proactive measures to support populations that are most at risk of this type of violence.

“There are no federal standards or regulations regarding the safety of firearms produced in the US,” the advisory says.

In the past few weeks, the US has witnessed several shooting incidents, with at least 21 other mass shootings recorded by the Gun Violence Archive since last Friday. According to CNN report, the Gun Violence Archive regards mass shootings as ones in which four or more people are shot, excluding the shooter.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Washington:

US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on Monday called for a warning label to be added to social media apps as a reminder that those platforms have caused harm to young people, especially adolescents.

Mr Murthy wrote in the New York Times on Monday that a warning label alone will not make social media safe for young people but that it can increase awareness and change behavior as shown in evidence from tobacco studies. The US Congress would need to pass legislation requiring such a warning label.

WHY IT IS IMPORTANT

For a long time, Mr Murthy has been warning that social media can profoundly harm the mental health of youth, particularly adolescent girls. In an advisory last year, he called for safeguards from tech companies for children who are at critical stages of brain development.

A 2019 American Medical Association study showed that the risk of depression doubled for teenagers who were spending three hours a day on social media.

KEY QUOTES

“It is time to require a surgeon general’s warning label on social media platforms, stating that social media is associated with significant mental health harms for adolescents,” Mr Murthy wrote on Monday. 

“A surgeon general’s warning label, which requires congressional action, would regularly remind parents and adolescents that social media has not been proved safe,” he added.

CONTEXT

Some US states have been working to pass legislation to safeguard children from the harmful effects of social media, such as anxiety, depression and other mental illnesses as a result.

New York state lawmakers this month passed legislation to bar social media platforms from exposing “addictive” algorithmic content to users under age 18 without parental consent.

In March, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill that bans children under 14 from social media platforms and requires 14- and 15-year-olds to get parental consent.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)