How having more than 300 friends on Facebook can be bad for teens

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Having more than 300 online friends on Facebook can cause elevated stress levels among teens, according to a study led by Professor Sonia Lupien and combined research from both Institut Universitaire en Santé Mentale de Montréal and the University of Montreal.

Professor Lupien and colleagues found that increased cortisol levels can occur in teenagers who have more than 300 friends. However, the stress hormone level can decrease when teens get "likes" and supportive messages from their online friends.

The research posted on the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology details how the social media platform can have both positive and negative effects. It also showed that online friend count may be proportional to stress levels; that is to say, the bigger the friends list, the higher the cortisol levels.

"While other important external factors are also responsible, we estimated that the isolated effect of Facebook on cortisol was around eight percent," said Professor Lupien in a statement, as reported by University Herald. "We were able to show that beyond 300 Facebook friends, adolescents showed higher cortisol levels; we can, therefore, imagine that those who have 1,000 or 2,000 friends on Facebook may be subjected to even greater stress."

For the study, the researchers surveyed nearly 90 kids ages 12 to 17. They asked the teens about Facebook; how many friends they have, how often they are online on there and how many "likes" and messages they get on the platform. Their cortisol levels were also collected.

According to Yahoo, some studies have shown that high cortisol levels in teens can make them susceptible to depression later in life.

However, an expert told the website that cortisol can affect kids differently and is not inherently bad at all. The research doesn't mean that parents need to enforce rules on children to only have a certain number of friends. Instead, they should get involved and constantly communicate with their kids seeing as Facebook can be a common platform they share.

"Ask them if they have friends who seem stressed out by Facebook," she suggests. "Maybe talk to them about what a friend purge would mean and think about doing one yourself with people you're not close to. Model that kind of decision-making," said Dr. Deborah Gilboa, parenting expert and physician, to the outlet.

Are you or your kids very active on Facebook? Do you think having many friends on your social media account affect the way you use it? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.