Pros and Cons in Using Social Media by Young Children

Nowadays, many people are using social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumbler, and so on. Since the Internet has rapidly! propagated, social media has progressed rapidly. The widespread use of mobile devices to access the internet gradually transformed the nature of our social interactions. Most people use smart phones, i-phones or mobile internet devices to easily access social network. It helps us contact friends, family, and other people even if they live far away. Social media has many advantages; nevertheless, it can be abused in moments by young children if we are not careful, because they can easily access social media. We need to understand and regulate the use of social media by young children.In discussions of social media, one controversial issue has been social media is good to use for children. On the one hand, some people argue social media is okay for children to use freely. On the other hand, other people even contend social media is for children to use with regulation. My own view is that we should understand and regulating the use of social media by young children, because overusing social media can create strong addictions, develop mental or physical disorders, and waste our time.

First of all, social media, such as Facebook, are very addictive. Especially, people who are lonely can become easily addicts. Human is social animal, so they want to make relationship with others. People would say drug or alcohol is more addictive and harmful for children than social media; social media addiction is not a big problem. Unfortunately, it is not true. Social media can lead to compulsive behavior. A report of the social media addiction by University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business says: “There is evidence to show as well that social behaviours like hugs and smiles are associated with dopamine release … it’s possible that social media is pleasurable and becomes addictive via the dopamine mechanism just as drugs or alcohol can(Fekken).” In the light of these facts, surely social media can make addicts, and it is hard to escape. The problem is most people who have an addiction to social media and do not even realize it.Children, also, can easily get mental and physical disorders through using social media. People might think social media does not contribute to disorders. They argue that social media is good for mental diseases because it help them express their feelings or thought easily. Also, through social media, they can be more connected with each other. However, as stated above, if children become addicts, naturally we could think they have emotional instability. Social media offers limited real interaction, through online contact. On the Mental Health Blog, psychologist, Aric Sigman claimed “Spending too much time online could lead to social isolation, loneliness and a negative outlook. These types of psychological symptoms could eventually lead to more serious health concerns, such as heart disease, cancer and dementia.(Sigman)” Using social media disturbs make deep relationship with others. When they are using social media they do not need to move or be active. As a result, it leads to mental and physical disorders.

Social media can become handicap in our life. In this sense, social media can hinder people to improve their talents. People think social media is good place to show their talents or works what they did. For example, they argue people can share video clip what they playing the instruments or dancing or singing. However, if you are not good at those things and if you spend time to do social media, it would be hard to improve your talents. Using social media steals your time what really want to do. If you do not pay attention, your time would go very fast, and it could not be returned. If you read books, or study, exercise, or practice something that you want to do instead of using social media, it would be much better for you and your future life.