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NP Pulse: The Voice of the Nurse Practitioner (AANP)Author: American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) Language: en Genres: Health & Fitness, Medicine Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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168. Social Media and the Sexualization of a Generation: Round Up on Adolescent Health PT4
Episode 168
Wednesday, 7 January, 2026
On this compelling episode of NP Pulse: The Voice of the Nurse Practitioner®️, Drs. Jessica Peck and Ashley Hodges reveal shocking trends affecting our children — and address the added risk and pressures young people face with increased exposure to social media. Social media plays a powerful role in shaping adolescent risk-taking, especially as teen brains are still developing and highly sensitive to reward and peer validation. In this final episode of AANP’s adolescent health series, nurse practitioner (NP) experts Peck and Hodges explore how digital environments influence mental, physical and sexual health — and how clinicians and parents can respond. By normalizing developmentally appropriate risk, avoiding fear-based approaches and using strengths-based, motivational interviewing strategies, NPs can help teens navigate social media safely and support healthier decision-making in today’s high-stakes digital world.
