The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness

by Jonathan Haidt

We need to consume a wide variety of foods to get all the necessary vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals. A child who eats only white foods (pasta, potatoes, chicken) will be nutrient deficient and at heightened risk of diseases such as scurvy (caused by a severe vitamin C deficiency). Similarly, humans are socially and culturally adaptable creatures who need a wide variety of social experiences to develop into flexible and socially skilled adults. Because children are antifragile, it is essential that those experiences involve some fear, conflict, and exclusion (though not too much). Safetyism is an experience blocker. It prevents children from getting the quantity and variety of real-world experiences and challenges that they need.