Scroll at your own risk: The dark side of social media

There are a bunch of reasons why social media has a negative impact on teens’ health. Although it helps teens stay connected with friends and keeps them up to date on world events, there are major problems that come with scrolling through social media. Three major issues with social media for teens is idolization, losing large amounts of sleep, and procrastination.

1. Dark truth / idolization

Social media might seem like a fun way to stay connected, but for many teens it has big downsides. Constantly scrolling can fill teens with anxiety, low self esteem, and even depression when comparing themselves to others online. When teens see influencers owning things that they want, such as cars, it is easy to get envious. This envy can lead to depression, because most users will never be as wealthy as the influencers they follow. This idolization can also affect sleep, school, and relationships in real life. Users often envy influencers because they seem perfect, which is unhealthy because it can make you ungrateful for the privileges you do have.

2. No bedtime / Sleep? What sleep?:

 Teens should roughly have 8-9 hours of sleep every night. Teen users often have a problem with lack of sleep because of scrolling through social media all day, even when it’s time for bed. This affects their capability and efficiency in the morning and makes them have a less of a working mindset for things like school, afternoon programs, jobs, etc. Personally, when I’m tired, I find it hard to stay awake in class and I lose focus easily.

3. Procrastination:

Social media is a major cause of procrastination for teens. What starts as “just five minutes” can quickly turn into hours of scrolling, causing them to put off homework, chores, or even sleep. I personally notice how quickly checking a notification can turn into hours of consuming content that may not be beneficial. This constant distraction makes it harder to focus, builds up stress, and leads to last-minute cramming or can lead to missed deadlines. When doomscrolling, teens can often find amusing things, for example a short little prank or people doing dumb stuff. This distracts teens from what they need to do. For example, youtuber Kanel Joseph records himself pulling pranks and messing with people in public. The fans are stimulated by his targets’ big reactions, and this is what hooks teen users.