The use of social media amongst children and teenagers must be regulated. Social media for young teens is known to induce and exacerbate mental health disorders such as depression, eating disorder’s, self image issues, and suicidal tendencies. Also, more information must be provided to parents educating them on the mental effects it has on their children
Over consumption of social media is causing children to become less empathetic (seen in the rising rates of cyberbullying) and develop a reduced attention span.
Problems stemming from social media addiction are also manifesting in the classroom. Children are becoming more violent, unable to focus on assigned tasks, and unable to develop socially. The overconsumption of media is preventing children from learning at an appropriate rate, it is necessary that the future of our country is capable of learning and thinking critically.
Also worth noting is the content of which children are becoming exposed too. The internet (and thereby social media) is riddled with explicitly violent and sexual content. Furthermore, children are not responsible enough to interact with others appropriately. Allowing a child unrestricted access to the internet means risking the exposure of personal information such as your home address, full name, and credit card information. Additionally, children are easily preyed upon on the internet and it is important that their safety is protected.
Social media companies need to be held more accountable regarding the users of their platforms. It is necessary that we implement more regulations in order to verify the age of new users; for instance, requiring a photo of a document that provides the individual’s age. Instating a policy that does so will preserve the mental health of children, improve the quality of their performance in school, protect them from child-predators, and enable the proper development of their brains. Thank you for reading!