Pre-teens Should Not Have Social Media Essay Example

Social media is like a vacuum. It sucks up your time and well-being until there is nothing left Though this is surprising It's no wonder that most pre-teens have mental health issues/ performance issues when parents of children ages 10 to 12 and 32% of parents of kids ages 7 to 9 reported their child used social media apps in the first six months of this year. (Rogers) that’s children who aren't even legally supposed to have social media are being affected by it and the danger that it brings. 

One of the dangers of social media is that kids see hurtful things which can leave them with bad mental health. Whether it's an ad for an explicit website, cartoons showing adult situations, or promoting self-harm; content like this may leave them confused/upset. (“what is inappropriate content”) Likewise, The things the kids see on the internet very much affect their mental health. Many pre-teens are exposed to things like this and don’t even realize it. FOMO (fear of missing out) also plays a big role in social media, damaging pre-teens' mental health. They may spend all day looking for things that they have been excluded from. (Stegner) because teens want to fit in when they see things like their friends hanging out without them. It can make them feel as if they are missing out. Pre-teens who use social media at a young age may be left with damaged mental health later.

Furthermore, not only can Pre-teens be affected by the things they see but also the people that they meet. Digital abuse or cyberbullying is dangerously common. 1 in 4 teenagers on social media has experienced digital abuse or harassment. (Urban Institute) These attacks often leave teens with mental scars that may take many years to recover from. (Stegner) these things can lead to problems in their adult life. These problems can include getting into abusive relationships. As said in an article on digital abuse “96 percent of pre-teens that have experienced digital abuse have also experienced other forms of violence or abuse from their partners.”(urban institute) with odds like that the only way to help stop this crisis against online bullying is to stop pre-teens from having the chance.

One of the misconceptions about social media is that it's not a big deal because most social media sites have age restrictions like 13 and up. (harper) these age restrictions help keep pre-teens and their very undeveloped minds away from inappropriate things. Though when this rule first came out it was very effective, nowadays kids will lie about their age. As best said in an article about restrictions “many parents are lying for their kids, many parents are confused, many feel left in the dark, feel pressured and out of their depth. So a system that is supposed to protect our children and educate our parents, is not achieving that goal. (Oglethorpe) These social media companies care more about the money they make than making sure that the age policies that they have put in place actually work.

Pre-teens should not have social media. Social media hurts mental health hurts leaving pre-teens scarred. It also is a danger for digital abuse which leads to actual abuse in the future. Age restrictions do not work and we need to stop acting as they do. Social media companies need to start taking action to keep pre-teens off their apps and stop putting these problems aside.