For many families, this school year might be the first their student has their own cell phone or access to social media.

We know both can have an impact on your mental health.

Studies show there’s an increase in depression, anxiety and body dysmorphia with the high utilization of social media.

We talked to Dr. Jennifer Katzenstein, co-director of the Center for Behavioral Health at Johns Hopkins All Children’s, on how to handle kids and social media and cell phones.

She said 13 is a good age to start introducing social media but to always monitor what they’re doing.

“It becomes more complicated, of course, when there’s other maybe photos that are shared, about 40 to 60% of our kids over the age of 12 have engaged in sexting. And so really, again, talking about those citizenship behaviors, having our kids understand that anything that they put on that device lives somewhere forever, now and can’t be removed from the internet. So being really thoughtful about what you’re posting, what you’re saying to others, especially when it could be screenshotted and sent onward or posted somewhere. And those things really don’t ever go away,” explained Dr. Katzenstein.

Dr. Katzenstein said they’ve also seen a U-shaped curve where no social media use and high social media use lead to an increase in mental health issues, especially in young girls.

But, just the right amount, roughly two hours per day, doesn’t show any increase at all.

“So the goal is no more than two hours per day of any device use outside of educational time. So trying to stick to that as a family setting down and setting those expectations together as a parent and a caregiver modeling that as well, is incredibly important,” explained Dr. Katzenstein.

So, how do you set your child up for success?

Dr. Katzenstein said talking about behaviors that are appropriate online, including how you treat someone else.

Also, monitor apps on devices your child uses and all their online activities so you know what’s going on and what’s being said. You can also use a monitoring app.