Multiple people are guilty of scrolling through social media at 3 in the morning, comparing themselves to the picture someone posted from school. That person gets jealous because everyone wants to be that person.  This is affecting our mental health which could lead to us not liking the way we look or even depression. I learned a lot about how social media can affect our mental health. We first need to understand why social media affects us, how much it affects us, why people want it, and lastly what age people should get it.

Social Media has a lot of bad effects on us but there are some ways that we can prevent this. An article published on March 29th, 2024, in Mclean Hospital entitled, “The Social Dilemma: Social Media and Your Mental Health,” analyzes that one of the common reasons that social media affects us is because people have the fear of missing out.” It is one of the most common reasons why people let social media affect them because they think that they are going to miss out on connections with people or  invitations to things. The majority of people might think that social media is just a thing that is there for people to connect with others or even express themselves but in reality, it is a much bigger deal. Social media is made up of over 4.8 billion people across the world. An article published on April 3rd, 2024, from the University of Maine, explained that “ There were 150 million new social media users between April 2022 and April 2023, which is about a 3.2% increase year-over-year. If we were to break those numbers down,  it equals approximately 410,000 new social media users every day, which is about 4.7 every second.” Just to think that there are 410,000 new social media users every day is insane. A lot of those users might be underage. Some ways that we can try not to let social media affect us is by setting a time limit on how long we last on social media.  We should be focusing on being more social in person instead of being online all the time. With the effect of social media affecting our mental health what percent of social media affects people in this day in life. 

With people being afraid they are going to be missing out on something if they quit, social media makes them keep posting new things even if they know the side effects of it affecting their mental health. That leads me to my next point about how much social media affects us. An article published on June 6th, 2022, from Online Therapy entitled “6 in 20 Americans Say Social Media Negatively Affects Their Mental Health'', explains that “ 61% of men and 50% of women, say they are or have been depressed as a result of social media use. An additional 54% of men have experienced loneliness based on social media use, compared to 41% of women.” Some effects that can happen to our mental health from social media are depression, anxiety, loneliness, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, or even suicide. Over the past decade, suicide has been the second most common way of death in the United States.  According to an article published by Andrew Frank Angelino, M.D, from Johns Hopkins Medicine, entitled Depression; What You Need to Know as You Age, tells us that “ People who are depressed are far more likely to have other chronic medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease, back problems, arthritis, diabetes, and high blood pressure, and maybe even worse outcomes. Untreated depression can even affect our immune response to some vaccines.” Even with these reasons they affect our mental health and increase the risk of, kids still want social media, but why? 

A lot of people use social media because they want to stay connected with friends and family but there are also other ways we can connect with people without using social media. Of people aged 13-17 90% of them have used social media and continue to use it, 75% of people have at least one social media profile, 51% visit a social media platform at least daily and 56% make up the amount of youth that use social media. An article published in January 2024, entitled Why Do People Use Social Media by OBERLO explains that “ The second main reason that people use social media is to tackle boredom. 38.5% of internet users say they use social media to fill their free time or their boredom.” A survey that was conducted in 2022 says about 68% of teens had social media. In my perspective, I think that a lot of people realize how much social media affects people and their mental health because they might just see it as a way to connect with people. Social media is made to be an addictive platform that people don’t think they will or are addicted to. According to an article published on March 29th, 2024, in Mclean Hospital entitled, “ The Social Dilemma: Social Media and Your Mental Health,” tells us that a lot of people like to use social media as a way to boost self-esteem and a way to feel included in social circles or even at school.” A survey that was conducted in 2023 96% of parents say that their kid has access to at least one social media platform.  I feel that there are a lot of kids on social media who lie about their age so that they can have social media. I don’t know what age is actually appropriate for people to give their kids social media which leads me to my next point.

I know that there are a lot of opinions out there about what age people should get on social media. I don’t know if there is an actual right age for people to get social media because of all the things that are and can be done. About 69% of adults have social media and about 81% of teens. The most common age that people get social media is 13 years or older. An article published on October 19th, 2023, in Boys and Girls Club of America, entitled “ What Age Should Kids Have Social Media”, analyzes that “ Giving your teen the tools to navigate social media is very important because if people were to ban social media platforms it might make kids seek out, and even hiding it from our parents.” Having social media at a young age can cause us to have sleep deprivation which then can lead to our brain not fully developing. If our brains don’t fully develop, teens like to do risky activities without thinking fully about the consequences. On social media, there is a lot of hate speech and cyberbullying that can be found online which isn't good for younger children to see or experience. An article published on May 26th, 2023, CNBC Make It, entitled “ Is there a ‘right’ age for kids to be on social media” explains that “ If you as a parent are on the fence about giving your children social media to wait until you’ve learned more and ready before allowing them to have it.” A lot of people have different opinions about social media and when we should allow our kids to have it but I think that there isn't a good time or age for when we should give it. As a parent they shouldn’t be forced or uncomfortable in giving social media out to their children, they should be allowed when they are most comfortable. 

In conclusion, social media is a lot of things for different people. A lot of people use it to connect with people while others might be getting the bad side of social media which is affecting their mental health.  There are a lot of things to do with social media and mental health, a lot of people just see it as a way to connect with friends and family without getting the side effects, whereas others get the effects which could be depression, anxiety, or even suicidal thoughts. I know that there might not be a right age for people to get social media but I think that kids under 13 shouldn’t have it because it can cause them to have bad habits or they could be using social media to get popularity. Sometimes I don't even like having social media because I know the effects that it can cause and a lot of people like to spread false information on it. I think that it is important for people to set time limits and be more in-person instead of online.