Negative Aspects of Social Media (Free Essay Sample)

“I think there should be regulations on social media to the degree that it negatively affects the public good." – Elon Musk. Social media is being used more than ever. This is important because social media is bad for mental health. The negative aspects of social media drastically outweigh the positives because it lowers confidence and distracts people from reality.

A negative aspect of social media is that it brings attention to both a person to themselves and a person to another person. Many students have social media. When these students are constantly scrolling through Instagram, TikTok, and even YouTube. Their brains are absorbing photos and videos of unrealistic bodies and lifestyle habits. This can cause a person to develop an eating disorder. “9% of the U.S. population, or 28.8 million Americans, will have an eating disorder in their lifetime.” (“National”). Most of those people diagnosed with an eating disorder also have an addiction to social media. Social media also affects a person's confidence. Confidence is an important trait for each person. Confident people are more likely to try new things and be presented with different opportunities. They are also more likely to stick to a task, even if it is challenging. Social media can lower a person's confidence by causing them to compare themselves with others, making them more insecure. This information is important because over half of the world’s population uses social media. 

Another negative aspect of social media is that it distracts people from reality. “The average daily social media usage of internet users worldwide amounted to 147 minutes per day” (“Daily”). When people always check social media, they could miss out on many memories and opportunities. Every week, students get distracted by their phones. This causes them to forget about assignments, causing their grades to decrease. Not only will their grades go down, but they may also get in trouble with their parents, lose scholarships, and get kicked out of any extracurriculars. Each minute spent on a phone is a minute of lost memories. Many people do not understand the importance of staying present. If more people put their phones away and deleted social media, we could function better as a society. Many families have a rule that there cannot be any devices at the table during meals. Studies show that when people focus on human interaction, they are less lonely. Some benefits of social interaction include a lightened mood, a lower risk of dementia, and a sense of safety. This is important information because the removal of cell phones and social media can positively benefit each person.

The negative aspects of social media outweigh the positives because it lowers self-confidence and distracts people from the real world. Social media can cause eating disorders and lowered self-esteem. Now is the time to delete social media.