Tune into just one episode of HBO's new teen drama show "Euphoria", and you're bound to see lots of penises, drug use, and violent sex.
...
But the graphic scenes in "Euphoria," although unrealistic, could still harm Gen Z teens. These images could offer ideas for unhealthy outlets, like drugs and violence, to cope with anxiety, depression, and other issues they do face.
...
From the get-go, "Euphoria" suggests high schoolers are obsessed with sex and drug abuse. In the first episode, a character named Maddy seeks revenge on her ex-boyfriend by stripping down to her underwear with a stranger and getting into her ex's pool during a party. People take videos of Maddy and the stranger making out, and rumors spread that they had sex in the pool, but she appears unbothered.
Another character, 16-year-old Kat, decides to lose her virginity to a different stranger at the same party. Her decision came after classmates and friends taunted her about still being a virgin at her age.
...
Dr. Nosal said she's noticed Gen Z teens are especially stressed, anxious, and depressed and believes social media plays a role, since it allows people to more easily compare themselves to others.
...
It is probably not a coincidence that teen suicide rates have increased even as substance abuse and sexual frequency have decreased. Hospitalizations for suicidal thoughts and attempts, specifically in children's hospitals across the US, doubled from 2008 to 2015, according to a May 2018 study in the journal Pediatrics.
Dr. Nosal believes shows like "Euphoria" could drive teens to partake in risky behavior.
"Teens are looking for a way to escape and numb their feelings and they may get ideas or think doing these things [on the show] could help them feel better," Dr. Nosal said. "[With teens] just being such an impressionable age, that graphic content, particularly the violence, is most concerning."