The part of the brain that helps in making decisions and maintaining self-control, according to neuroscience, is not fully developed during adolescence. In such a situation, likes, comments, and continuous scrolling on social media increase dopamine in the brain (a feeling of happiness). This pushes them towards an addiction similar to drugs. As a result, serious risks like depression, anxiety, inferiority complex about their appearance, and suicide are increasing among teenagers. Recently, a jury in Los Angeles ruled that Meta and YouTube’s ‘addictive design’ caused mental harm to a young user. Following this decision, the demand for curbing these platforms has intensified worldwide. Countries like Australia and France have already imposed restrictions. Teenagers’ brains are like an ‘under construction’ highway The teenage mind can be understood like a highway under construction. The emotional part works rapidly, but the impulse (thoughts of the mind) control part is still developing. Due to this imbalance, online rejections or negative comments affect teenagers more severely. Less sleep, increased obesity; direct link to anxiety Excessive use of social media is also leading to problems like less sleep and obesity. Research on over 9,000 teenagers in 8 countries has linked problematic social media use to higher levels of depression and anxiety. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among Canadian youth. Illusion of friendship, actually increasing loneliness According to trial data, most of the time spent on Meta’s platforms is not used for connecting with friends. Only 7% of time on Instagram and 17% on Facebook is spent in active conversation; the rest of the time is spent scrolling the screen. This creates an illusion of connection, but the result is loneliness.
