Smartphones Leads to Less Live Communication

Many teens use smartphones everyday, this affects them in numerous ways. The use of smartphones daily affects teens mental health by increasing anxiety In addition, the use of smartphones and social media can lead to sleep deprivation among teens. Therefore, the usage of smartphones leads to less live communication and it is detrimental to the health of teenagers because it can increase anxiety and can lead to sleep deprivation.

To begin, the use of smartphones affects teen’s mental health by increasing anxiety, many teens check their various social media accounts multiple times a day. In fact, according to Kathy Steinmetz, “About one-third said they used it more that once a day; now more than two-thirds do. . . . Nearly 90% of teenagers now say they have a smartphone, compared to 41% who said so in 2012” (2). This proves that teens are owning and using smartphones more now than ever before. As a result, teen anxiety and sleep deprivation has risen. Sherri Gordon reports, “Not only do they feel pressure to respond quickly inline, but they also feel pressure to have perfect photos and well-written post, all of which can cause a great deal of anxiety” (2). This shows how when teens invest in their social media accounts they can feel anxiety. It has been shown, that the use of social media leads to anxiety in teens.

Another important point is that many teens use their smartphones and social media too much and this affects many teens valuable sleep patterns. According to Sheri Gordon, “Consequently, this sleep loss can lead to moodiness, a drop in grades, and overeating, as well as exacerbate existing problems like depression, anxiety, and ADD” (2). Therefore, when teenagers spend too much time on their phones, often instead of sleeping, it can have a colossal affect on the health of teens. For instance, often times teens open Snapchat, Twitter, or Instagram before bed, usually they only mean to check the latest news and maybe tell their friends goodnight. However, before they know it they have been on their phone for one hour, so they say five more minutes and they will go to bed, but those five minutes turn into another hour! All too often this happens to teens and then in the morning, they are moody and exhausted and fall asleep during math class, so then they fail their math test the next day. It has been proven, that teens spend too much time on their smartphones, leading to sleep deprivation.

In contrast, an opposing view among scholars is that teens should have smartphones because it can lower depression and help teens feel more connected to people around them. This is shown by Kathy Steinmetz, “. . . Around one-in-five teens said that it had effects like making them feel more popular and more confident, as well as less lonely and less depressed” (1). This proves that many teens feel that being on social media helps them feel like they belong, which in return makes them less depressed. In addition to being less depressed teens also said they were less lonely and felt more popular. Consequently, this makes teens happier and healthier! In summary, teens feel that being on social media makes them happier and less lonely.

In conclusion, the use of smartphones leads to a downfall in live communication and is very harmful to the mental health of teens because it can cause anxiety and sleep deprivation. Many teens spend too much time on their phones instead of sleeping and this leads to very serious health issues. Not only does too much smartphone use cause sleep deprivation but also anxiety due to the fact that teens face so much pressure to keep up with their social media profiles. In summation, teens need to spend less time on their smartphones before irreversible damage is caused by excessive use.

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