The Duke of Sussex has criticised social media for being ‘more dangerous’ than drugs and alcohol.
The 34-year-old royal made the remark on Wednesday as part of a roundtable discussion on children’s mental health at the YMCA in south Ealing, London.
“Social media is more addictive than drugs and alcohol, yet it’s more dangerous because it’s normalised and there are no restrictions to it,” he said.
The young royal also said that video games such as Fortnite “shouldn’t be allowed” due to their propensity to become addictive.
“Where is the benefit in having that game in your household?” he added. “It’s created to addict – an addiction to keep you in front of a computer for as long as possible. It’s so irresponsible.”
During the visit, Prince Harry also discussed the taboo surrounding mental health, telling the 12 other roundtable participants that there’s been “huge progress” in normalising the conversation, but that society still has a long way to go.
“There is too much negativity surrounding mental health, and no wonder it’s so hard for young people to actually talk about it,” he added.
“Let’s keep reminding each other that it’s okay not to be okay, and to listen to each other. After all, how we think determines how we act, how we feel, and how we treat ourselves and those around us.”
The discussion was convened by the Royal Foundation’s own mental health campaign, Heads Together, and included representatives from a variety of organisations such as LGBT charity Stonewall, eating disorder charity Beat and Safe Live, which helps victims of domestic abuse.
Prince Harry’s comments came just hours after his new Instagram account had broken a world record for the fastest time to gain 1 million followers on the platform, which it achieved within five hours and 45 minutes, according to the global authority on record-breaking achievements Guinness World Records.
On Tuesday, Kensington Palace announced it had launched a verified Instagram account, under the handle @sussexroyal, on behalf of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
The Duchess of Sussex is expected to give birth to the royal couple’s first child this spring.
