Would you support or oppose a nationwide ban on social media use for users under the age of 16?

Support (59%) – "Even if its implementation isn't perfect (which it won't be and critics will use that as an excuse not to try at all), the impact of a ban is more symbolic than actual. A ban would alert parents to be more vigilant, support schools in creating and upholding policies, and potentially be a positive influence on the youngest members of our society as they grow up."

• "I just got Instagram, and I'm 18. It's only been a few days and I'm already understanding how easily everyone gets addicted. I don't like it, and I don't think that young people with such easily shaped minds should be exposed to it any earlier than necessary"

"Social skills are needed by everyone but are even more important for young people who are just developing them... or not if they are on electronic social sites most of their day. Of course, Meta and others dispute the damage which is factually documented but it is real and we need to find ways of stopping it from eventually ruining our human based culture. Kids certainly aren't going to have productive biological relationships with or learn the essentials of them from 'fake' relationships with computers and machines."

• "As a younger person (20) i feel like my mental health has been irreversibly altered by social media. i haven’t been using it as long as some of my peers but even with my dose i find it harder to put the phone down on a daily basis than i probably should. i hope that a ban like this will allow kids to peruse activities outside of something on a social media platform. these years of life are really important to find out what you want to do in life and if you’re constantly attending to social media then it’s hard to find a way to make life feel fulfilling."

"Social media is restrictive to young adults ability to become socially intereactive. Social media has been shown to be a leading cause of mental health issues in young children and teenagers. Parental restraints on a childs access to social media is not the answer--it will only cause more problems. Unfortunately, attempting to restrict social media based on age will not be the answer, since those under the age of 16 will find ways to get around the age restrictions."

• "Kids need to be kids. Their brains are insufficiently developed to assess what is fake and what is a scam on social media. They don't need to start early with the keeping up with the Jonses, they need to learn to restrain themselves. They need more physical activity. They will have more than enough time as they age to become immobile addicts to their electronics."

Oppose (20%) – "I detest any government action that restricts people's rights. While this is focused on children, that simply weakens the parent's responsibilities and shifts it. Hold parent's responsible for the actions of their children. At the same time, create new programs to encourage children to interact in person."

• "While I agree that social media is a problem for minors, government intervention here is not going to solve anything. Having raised several recent teenagers, this is 100% a parenting issue. Control of when a child has the ability to have access to social media, let alone the technology to access it, is a parental choice. We withheld cell phones from our children until high school and they were no worse for wear, and actually seem to be better adjusted to actual social skills and society than if they had that sooner."

Unsure/other (21%) – "On general principle, the less social media is available to kids, the better. However, bans don't often work the way regulators envision. Further, that's going to result in EVERYONE having to verify their age to access social media, and I'm not really inclined to give my personal identity to every media site to which I want access; that would be the death knell to whatever meager privacy still exists in online spaces."

• "Generally speaking, I prefer the government to stay out of this arena and for parents to do their jobs and parent their children. On the other hand, the government creating child labor laws was done to protect children as it appears that the parents were not (could not?) protect their children."