Denmark just did what most parents wish they could do alone.
They banned social media for every child under 15. Not because kids are too young, but because their brains are. For years, we’ve asked 12-year-olds to manage dopamine loops designed for adult nervous systems. We’ve told kids to “use it responsibly” while algorithms study their impulses faster than their prefrontal cortex can grow. We’ve blamed attention problems, anxiety, body image spirals, and sleep collapse on “kids these days,” when the truth is simpler: We handed developing brains a system built to overwhelm them. Here’s what the science has been saying for a decade: ➡️ The adolescent brain has no brakes yet. The prefrontal cortex, the part that handles impulse control and long-term thinking, won’t fully mature until around 25. Meanwhile, the limbic system is in overdrive, wired for risk, thrill, and peer approval. ➡️ Dopamine hits land harder in puberty. Every like, ping, and notification trains the reward system to chase quick pleasure over deep focus. Teens aren’t weak. Their ...
