Recall issued for 38,000 GM vehicles in Canada over software safety glitch
Transport Canada has issued a recall for 38,000 General Motors (GM) vehicles for safety risks related to a software glitch, the agency reported in a notice on Wednesday.
Neuroscientist Emma Duerden says social media can alter children's brains and have negative impacts on their mental health.
"Social media can impact the developing brain in very specific ways," Duerden told CTV News Channel on Friday. "We know [social media] can act on the brain's stress response system, but also the reward system of the brain."
Duerden is an assistant professor at Western University and the Canada Research Chair in neuroscience and learning disorders. Her research has found links between screen time and "negative internalizing behaviours" that can lead to stress and anxiety in children.
"The screen is changing all the time," Duerden said. "Especially if they're sitting in classrooms where they're constantly getting notifications, that habitual checking has actually been associated with specific changes in brain regions involved in fear and anxiety in teenagers, so it's very concerning."
Duerden explained how social media use can also release the neurochemical dopamine into the brain. Associated with pleasure, dopamine can be triggered by activities like enjoying music and taking drugs. While we normally don't experience this kind of "rush" constantly in our everyday lives, social media can create a steady stream of rewarding feelings.
"That's where it's becoming really concerning for children, where they're on these apps, they're posting images, they're commenting on images, and they're often seeking validation," Duerden added. "They can be spending a lot of time online and avoiding in-person social interactions, which can lead to loneliness and social isolation and could really underlie some of the mental health concerns associated with using social media."
Four Ontario school boards announced Thursday that they have to seek $4.5 billion in damages from Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta, the owner of both Facebook and Instagram, for creating products that have allegedly caused "widespread disruption to the education system."
Duerden encourages parents to have open dialogues about social media use with their children and to consider reducing screen time if necessary.
"If parents are concerned, really encourage limiting social media use, limiting screen time, having screen-free time during the day or… at meals," Duerden advised. "Really encourage limiting screen time use at least one hour before bedtime, as it's really associated with disrupting children's sleep which is so important for healthy brain development."
You can watch the full interview with Duerden above.
Transport Canada has issued a recall for 38,000 General Motors (GM) vehicles for safety risks related to a software glitch, the agency reported in a notice on Wednesday.
Israel killed a top Hezbollah commander and other senior figures in the Lebanese movement in an airstrike on Beirut on Friday, vowing to press on with a new military campaign until it is able to secure the area around the Lebanese border.
Police say three people were injured after an individual armed with a knife entered a Montreal-area Islamic cultural centre Friday afternoon.
An 11-year-old boy died Monday after subway surfing in New York City. He's the fourth person to die from subway surfing in the city this year.
Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.
An Ontario man says he’s still waiting for a vehicle he purchased on Kijiji to be delivered to his home. But after more than a month, he says he’s losing hope that the car will arrive and believes that he is a victim of a scam.
The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.
A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.
An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.
Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.
They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.
A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.
Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.
The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.
It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.
A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.
David Krumholtz, known for roles like Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause and physicist Isidor Rabi in Oppenheimer, has spent the latter part of his summer filming horror flick Altar in Winnipeg. He says Winnipeg is the most movie-savvy town he's ever been in.