Why young people should stay off social media!

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Why young people should stay off social media

According to all scientific evidence, there is a mental health crisis among young people. For example, 5–15-year-olds in England show a steady increase in mental disorders from 9.7% in 1999 to 10.1% in 2004 and 11.2% in 2017 (Bolton and Bhugra, 154-161). Or how researchers found a growing need for youth mental health services in Canada (Weins et al). There's been an increasing body of work investigating the source of the phenomenon. But it’s become clear that the primary source of the outbreak is the prolonged use of social media and electronics.

Research has shown that as society has evolved, so has our mental health (Bolton and Bhugra, 154-161). Our mental health declines as our physical lives become more convenient. More screen time leads to increased instances of depression and anxiety (Cheever et al, 290-297). And now, more and more young people are sitting inside, glued to their devices.

In the modern world, texting and other forms of social media have become an integral part of youth's day-to-day life. But as this has become the norm, researchers have noticed an alarming trend. Young adults from the United States who depend on their devices have higher anxiety than those who don’t (Cheever et al, 290-297).

Furthermore, a study on young adults from the United States found a correlation between it and mental disorders. Those who spent the most time on social media were the most likely to develop depressive symptoms (Lin et al, 323-331). So, parents and caregivers must abstain from giving their children access to platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and X.

Conversely, studies have found that coming off the screens and going outside can help improve someone’s mental health. In Europe, there are programs for getting students out of the classroom and into the wilderness. For example, a class of 14-year-olds reported higher levels of life satisfaction after their experience walking through the Alps (Mutz and Muller, 105-114). So, it’s easy to conclude that social media harms teens and young adults.

Works Cited

Bolton, Derek, and Dinesh Bhugra. “Changes in Society and Young People Mental Health.” International Review of Psychiatry, vol. 33, no 1-2, 2021, 154-161. Taylor & Francis Online.

Cheever, Nanny A, et. al. “Out of Sight is Not Out of Mind: The Impact of Restricting Wireless Mobile Device use on Anxiety Levels Among Low, Moderate and High Users.” Computers in Human Behavior, vol. 37, August 2014, 290-297. ScienceDirect.

Lin, Liu Yi, et. Al. “Association Between Social Media use and Depression among U.S. Young Adults.” Depression and Anxiety, vol. 33, no 4, January 2016, 323-331. Wiley Online Library.

Wiens, K. et al. “A Growing Need for Youth Mental Health Services in Canada: Examining Trends in Youth Mental Health from 2011 to 2018.” Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences 29 (2020): e115. Web.