Mental Health

Music Videos on YouTube Pose Health Hazard to Teens

By Kanika Gupta | Update Date: Jan 22, 2016 01:58 PM EST

According to the research conducted by University of Nottingham, girls aged between 13 and 15 are being exposed to high levels of tobacco and images of alcohol through online music videos. The study was published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health examined 32 most popular music videos online for a period of 12-weeks. Experts revealed, based on their own research and data gathered from census, that at least 22% of the viewers were teenagers and 6% were adults. As they worked out the 10-second slots that depict the number of alcohol and tobacco impressions throughout the music video, it revealed that more than 1,006 million impressions of alcohol and 203 million impressions of tobacco were formed. Blurred Lines by Robin Thicke, Trumpets by Jason Derulo, Drunk in Love by Beyonce and Timber by Pitbull delivered maximum number of tobacco and alcohol impressions, said the study, reports Sky News

Dr Jo Cranwell, psychologist from the University of Nottingham, suggests that there should be stricter measures put in place to safeguard the teenagers. She expressed concern about the potential of smoking and drinking among teenagers. "Girls are looking at role models beyond their core family unit and their peers. They're looking at wider society and they're looking at celebrities on film," she said. "They're very attractive and they lead very aspirational lifestyles and these young girls are looking to them to learn about how they should look and how they should behave. The BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) should include portrayals of alcohol and tobacco smoking in their 'drug misuse' and their 'dangerous behaviours presented as safe age classification' criteria and at the moment they're not," as reported by Independent. The researchers suggest music videos pose a "significant health hazard that requires appropriate regulatory control".

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