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I know we often hear that, especially from our parents, having too much harms us. What if they were right all along, and we just don't take it seriously. 

Now, let me ask you a question. Have you ever wondered why it is hard to concentrate and we get easily distracted? Hearing that notification distracts us, and our minds slip away and overthink. What was that? Who messaged me? Was a new task assigned? A post from my idol? And, of course, we can't help ourselves to check it, and now we are distracted. Do you also realize that we often forget things? Out of nowhere, you forget something and can't remember where you placed it, and if there's an exam for tomorrow, you can't fully remember that topic you reviewed yesterday. Thus, it is difficult to learn efficiently. Concentration and good memory are essential in every student's life. If students lack those aspects, it causes multiple problems with learning since they cannot focus on a particular assignment for a long time. To the point, too much exposure can negatively affect youth’s cognition to perform well. 

First of all, We all know that the Internet is designed to communicate and make things easier for us. Now the internet has been prominent and helpful since pre-pandemic for online classes and as a source of information. Internet with education is concerned with the creation of knowledge. In fact, it has been found in the present study that 92 percent of students in a university have good internet exposure. Users have opined that the internet is more beneficial than conventional documents. Providing free access to the Internet has greatly improved students’ academic efficiency.

We can’t disagree that social media is the dominant medium used to communicate through the internet and for interpersonal communication. According to a study in 2017, this digital age has given us the idea to be online 24/7 on as many social sites as possible to avoid missing anything "really exciting" happening worldwide. As Baym said, "We may be physically present in one space, yet mentally and emotionally engaged elsewhere" in the online space. Youth have embraced this media as a way to explore and share parts of their evolving identities.

As I mentioned, this generation gave this idea to be online as long as possible, and now we have this threatening situation in our daily lives.  Internet addiction is a lack of control over one's Internet habits that causes considerable harm in other aspects of their life. With the internet's significant infiltration into our lives, concern about the implications of such deep dependency on this technology may be emerging. The U.S. National Library of Medicine reports that it’s estimated that youth between the ages of 8 to 28 spend about 44.5 hours each week in front of digital screens. And for more information, here are some signs if a person is an “internet addict.” They stay up all night to be on the Web and become angry or agitated when interrupted while online. Loses all interest in activities they previously enjoyed before becoming obsessed with being online. Furthermore, this digital overexposure can have adverse effects on our cognitive and mental health. Without question, the internet has enhanced productivity and made knowledge freely accessible to everybody, but at the same time, this accessibility has harmed people's capacity to think critically.

The tendency to rely on the internet for nearly everything diminishes the human ability to be curious, feel, absorb, and retain information. In a study in the Journal of Information Technology, around 72 percent of five-hundred-14 participants frequently do not pay attention in classroom lectures since information is conveniently accessible online whenever they want.  Approximately 69 percent of participants seek online assistance for problem-solving and other academic activities rather than doing them independently, which restricts their thinking and learning abilities. Around 82 percent of participants agreed that internet use had a detrimental impact on their ability to focus on academics, while just 36 percent said it was beneficial to their studies. Research confirmed that the internet and social media or video gaming highlight potential problematic issues in one person's mental health. It affects our psychosocial well-being, tend to experience depressive mood, impulsivity or ADD, ADHD, low self-esteem, and anxiety. 

Despite these effects, we can still lessen these negative impacts on our brains. First, we can limit the time spent on the internet. Make sure your internet use isn’t taking time away from your family. Monitor and set a task tracker of things you do. Enhance concentration by improving your sleep and meditation, and also be physically engaged.

In summary, students maximize internet use to their advantage to learn and communicate.  Too much dependence on the internet can lead to being addicted to it. It affects our lives mentally, emotionally, and cognitively.  We can still lessen these harmful effects, just learn to control and take action. In reality, sensible use and maintaining balance are the keys to reaping the full benefits of the Internet. Indeed, the Internet has many uses, but prolonged Internet use has a wide range of effects on cognition elements, influencing cognitive development.