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5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 20 MAY 2020 NEWS LAURA CALLEJA MALTESE teenagers have regis- tered as having the highest prob- lematic social media usage across the board, in an international Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study published today by the WHO Regional Of- fice for Europe. The study found that among 13-year-old olds, 20% of girls and 13% of boys were problematic social media users. The figures remained relatively similar for 15-year-olds with 18% of girls and 17% of boys labelled as problemat- ic social media users. 11-year-olds ranked second. Overall 7% of adolescents were classified as problematic social media users, based on the Social Media Disorder Scale. Problem- atic social media use is character- ized by addiction-like symptoms such as loss of control over one's use of social media at the expense of other important life domains, including relationships with peers and parents, and hobbies. Most adolescents still felt satis- fied with their lives, with an over- all score of 7.8 out of 10. In general Maltese adolescents scored be- tween 6.9 and 8 – with boys scor- ing higher across all age groups, a trend among most countries and regions. But the report also found a trend in Malta, that between 2014 and 2018, there was a decline in life satisfaction. The HBCS report compiled ex- tensive data on the physical health, social relationships and mental well-being of 227,441 schoolchil- dren aged 11, 13 and 15, from 45 countries. "How we respond to this growing problem will echo for generations. Investing in young people by, for example, ensuring they have easy access to mental health services appropriate to their needs, will buy a triple dividend: bringing health, social and economic gains to today's adolescents, tomorrow's adults and future generations," WHO Regional Director for Eu- rope, Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge said. Health In terms of weight, the study found that overall one in five ad- olescents (21%) were found to be overweight or obese. However, Malta had the highest levels in all three age groups, 11, 13 and 15 – in 2018 34% of girls and 44% of boys aged 11-year-olds were cat- egorised as overweight or obese. In the same year, 35% of girls and 38% of boys aged 13-years-old were also found to be overweight or obese. Lastly, 30% of girls and 40% of boys aged 15-year-old were also found to be overweight or obese. The report also found that when it came to adolescents brushing their teeth at least twice a day, there was a higher prevalence among girls – with Malta having one of the lowest records of ad- olescents brushing their teeth at least twice a day. Daily vegetable intake was low- est in South European countries, with only 25% of Maltese adoles- cents registering that they ate veg- etables every day – right behind Italy at 27% and Croatia at 28%. It found that between 2014 and 2018, the largest decrease seen among 15-year-old boys in Malta, dropping by 14%. In terms of sweet consump- tion between 2014 and 2018, Malta showed a consistent in- crease across all genders and age groups, the largest increase be- ing among 15-year-old, especial- ly boys. Malta, however, registered a large decrease in the consumption of soft drinks, with the report ob- serving a decrease among 13-year- old boys, down by 16%. Sexual and reproductive health Across all countries, one in four 15-year-olds (25%) who had sex did not use either of the most ef- fective contraceptive methods – a condom or a pill. This was seen higher on average in Malta, with 52%. The lowest prevalence of con- dom use was also found in Malta at 39%. Only 6% of sexually active girls used the pill in Malta. The highest levels of pill use were among girls in the Netherlands with 70%. Alcohol consumption When asked whether they had ever drunk alcohol in their life- time, 16% of girls and 21% of boys aged 11 said they had in Mal- ta. The figures were higher for 13-year-olds with 43% of girls and 38% of boys saying they had tried alcohol before. The figure than spiked to 63% of girls and 68% of boys in the 15-year-old age group. With Malta only seeing a slight in- crease between 2014 and 2018. Peer support and schoolwork pressure More than half of adolescents reported high support from their peers (65% girls and 55% boys). For social well-being, it is essential to have a good group of friends we can count on at the most difficult times. The report found in Malta across all age groups girls felt they had more support than boys. 70% of girls and 53% of boys aged 11 felt they had peer support. While 75% of girls and 50% of boys aged 13 felt they had peer support. And lastly, 70% of girls and 56% of boys aged 15 felt they had peer support. In terms of schoolwork pressure, over a third (36%) of adolescents reported feeling some or a lot of pressure from schoolwork. How- ever, in Malta, the largest group was 15-year-old girls with 80% of them reporting they felt pressure in comparison to 62% of boys. The report also found that Malta had a relatively low level of school satisfaction among the same age group with only 25% of girls and 22% of boys feeling satisfied with their education. Maltese teens have highest problem social media usage CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 MaltaToday is informed that unless a response from EU states is fortcoming by Friday, Malta will be vetoing – and there- fore blocking – the appointment of Ital- ian Ettore Socci, who was slated to take over command of the Irini mission. Admiral Socci, who served in Opera- tion Enduring Freedom in Afghanstan as well as in Bosnia, Somalia and the former Yugoslavia, was apopinted Force Com- mander of the EU's Operation Sophia in June 2019 The first three months of Operation Ir- ini have seen a 400% increase in migrant arrivals in the Central Mediterranean but close to nil in the Eastern side of Libya, which is blockaded by EU vessels. Initial- ly, the operation will have three vessels contributed by France, Greece and Italy, one Maltese boarding team and three di- rectly assigned patrol aircraft from Ger- many, Luxembourg and Poland, and the same number of vessels and aircraft in associated support. Malta wants to keep its ports shut to mi- grants rescued at sea because of the coro- navirus pandemic. But the country is also suffering from a lack of a migrant reloca- tion framework that shares the responsi- bility of rescued people at sea among all EU member states. 162 migrants are currently housed on two Captain Morgan pleasure boats on Jurds Bank, outside territorial waters 13 nautical miles off the east coast of Malta. On 8 May, Malta formally informed the European Commission it would veto de- cisions on Operation Irini that concern spending procedures for disembarkation of migrants, port diversions, and the eli- gibility of drones (unmanned aerial vehi- cles). Malta said it is facing an "unprecedent- ed crisis" and disproportionate flows as a result of human smuggling and criminal activities in the Central Mediterranean, citing a 438% increase of arrivals in Malta through this route. The only country so far to have pledged support to Malta is France, which has committed itself to taking 30 of the 162 migrants currently on the Captain Mor- gan boats. France pledges to take 30 of 160 migrants in burden-sharing effort with Malta The Europa II, a pleasure craft that usually ferries tourists around the island, is one of two boats being used to hold migrants outside Malta's territorial waters