Recent OECD findings reveal that 15-year-olds in Germany spend approximately 48 hours per week in front of screens, averaging seven hours daily. This ranks Germany fifth highest among 36 countries, just behind Poland and Estonia.

A study by German health insurer DAK shows that 1.5 million young people in Germany use social media to a problematic extent, with about 350,000 considered addicted.

Education Minister Karin Prien (CDU) is advocating for a legal minimum age of 13 for independent social media use, along with phased safeguards up to age 18. She calls for effective age verification by platforms.

An expert commission chaired by Nadine Schön has issued 56 recommendations, including making platforms more accountable for age verification and protection. Schön noted that digital media radicalizes democratic discourse and harms child development.

Leni, now 18, realized two years ago she was spending up to 10 hours daily on TikTok and YouTube, neglecting school. She now limits her media consumption to about five hours a day and supports a social media ban for younger children.

Florian Buschmann, founder of the “Offline Heroes” initiative, shares his story of gaming addiction, playing Warface up to 16 hours a day. He now gives school presentations to help teens break free from digital dependency.

Andreas Pauly, head of a media addiction prevention organization, warns of rising pornography addiction and uncontrolled spending among teens. Some 17-year-olds are already €10,000 in debt. His group runs a “One Day Off” campaign, challenging participants to go without smartphones for 24 hours.

Source: www.dw.com