I see people glued to their cell phones all the time, maybe others have too. Some even go on their phones in the middle of a conversation which personally I find offensive. I know lately, some teenagers struggle with screen time and being on their phones too much, even some adults struggle with the same thing and I don't blame them. Mostly because how can we expect kids to know any better? Parents nowadays are giving kids phones at such young ages. Kids are basically growing up with cell phones and access to social media and I don't support it. However, I don't necessarily blame the parents because there's a lot of pressure and conflicting information when it comes to making that decision. They also have to keep in mind the impact it will make, exposure to social media, and the safety of their kids. 

Parents are feeling the pressure to make the right decision and this pressure can come from anyone; family members, neighbors, doctors, etc. Is there really a right decision to make though? I don't think so. I did some research trying to find the right answer and almost every study said something different but Caroline Miller wrote in the article “When Should You Get Your Kid a Phone?”, last updated March 13, 2023, on the Child Mind Institute website, says that kids are ready by at least eighth grade and an eighth grader is usually thirteen-fourteen years old. I don't totally agree with this. Instead, I agree with other studies saying that it matters on the maturity of the child. But not all kids will be at the same level of maturity, especially girls and boys at that age. So I think half of these websites are telling parents false information because we shouldn’t be basing the decision on age, it should be based on maturity. If parents do decide to give their kids phones when they're young I believe they need to set restrictions. Phones are so advanced nowadays. Why not use advanced technology and set restrictions to help your kids? Whether it’s monitoring their texts, restricting websites, adding screen time limits to apps, or other ways. If they don't add safeguards and limits it can have a powerful impact on the child. 

There are many impacts talked about on the internet and María Alejandra Castro Arbeláez a college graduate who has a master's degree in Clinical Psychoanalysis and Neuroscience wrote “8 Reasons why Children Under 12 Shouldn't Use Smartphones” last updated March 16, 2022, on the youaremom website. In this article she makes very strong points, some points being that it can affect sleep patterns for young children, it can harm brain development and then that it might lead to an attention deficit disorder, and could even give excesses to radiation. Why would parents want to expose their kid to all that when it can hurt them the most? That article is only the tip of the iceberg too. It just lists some ways phones impact kids but you'd be surprised how many more there are. Another main impact is that there's a risk that all cellphone users, not just kids, could possibly get associated with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder(OCD) and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder(ADHD). On the official Mayo Clinic website, the article “Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD),” last updated March 11, 2020,  states that OCD is patterns of unwanted thoughts and fears (obsessions) that lead to repetitive behaviors (compulsions). They also talk about ADHD on the Mayo Clinic website in the article “Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children,” last updated June 25, 2019. The article explains that ADHD is a mental health disorder that includes a combination of persistent problems, such as difficulty paying attention, hyperactivity, and impulsive behavior. Some might be thinking that since that is a risk for everyone it shouldn't matter but kids shouldn’t have to be dealing with stuff like that when they are young so why not try and keep them from it as long as you can? What I've said so far is only some of the impacts kids can get from phones and social media. Not to mention, social media also affects their mental health in a variety of ways.

I truly believe that social media takes such a toll on mental health. As a teenager, I don't understand why we are giving kids access to social media because social media not only exposes them to bullying, rumor spreading, unrealistic views of other people's lives, and peer pressure but it also can cause self-image issues. Mayo Clinic stated on February 26, 2022, in the article “Teens and social media use: What's the impact?” on their website which proves my point. Another fact is that 85% of the world is affected by self-image so it's possible that these kids will deal with it later on in their life but again they shouldn't have to deal with stuff like this so young. Social media changes how one views the world. Kids' brains are still developing and they are being influenced by top creators on social media these creators are influencing their opinions before they even have the chance to think for themselves and let's be honest, some of these creators don't have the best opinions either. This is one reason why social media is not safe. 

Tarana Burke who is an American activist agrees with me and quotes “Social media is not a safe space.”. Just think about this quote for a second. She's talking about safety, the safety of kids. A parent's job is to protect their kid at all costs and one main thing they have to protect them from is strangers. “What would you do if a stranger offered you candy?” or “what would you do if a stranger asked you to follow them?” These are questions that I hear some parents ask their kids but I've never heard a parent ask their kids `What would you do if you get a text from a stranger?”.  I bet some kids are smart enough to show their parents the text or to block the number but I know some kids aren't, and that can lead to some scary situations. I will say though that phones aren't all bad. I have an app on my phone that's called Life360. Maybe you've heard of it and basically, it is an app that can show my parents where I am, how fast I'm driving, and what percentage my phone is at. 

Today I've passionately talked about the pressure on parents, the impact it will make, social media, and the safety of kids. Why I'm so passionate about this is because ever since I got my phone I've found myself glued to it and I hope that this next generation and maybe even the generation after them won't have this problem. But I haven't seen too many changes and it seems like it is only getting worse. So hopefully someone out there agrees with me and hopefully, someone with a larger platform will someday speak up and say something about this topic for everyone to hear.