Human communication has evolved over centuries, decades and years. It took many forms such as signs, language, writing, telegraph, phone calls, e-mails, texts, and now, social networking sites. However, parents are worried for their children's health as health conditions rise up secondary to social networking practices. Cyber bullying, lack of communication and depression are just some of the conditions children go through.
According to Statistics, Facebook users soared high from 1 million in 2004 to 1.23 billion in 2013. From a survey done by the MinorMonitor, 38% of Facebook accounts are owned by children 12 years old and younger. Alarmingly, 4% of children who has a Facebook account are 6 years old and below.
Parents are alarmed of the effects of social networking not only on the child's physical health but also on their mental and emotional health. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, many children's social development revolves around the online world. Some issues encountered by children are cyber bullying, communication with strangers and even exposure to mature content.
From a study by Dr. Larry D. Rosen from California State University Department of Psychology, children and teenagers who are obstinately logged on social networking sites like Facebook often manifest psychological disorders such as aggressive attitudes, antisocial behavior, paranoia and tendencies for increased alcohol use. He also found out that children who use the internet regularly have more stomach aches, headaches and sleeping problems.
In a recent study conducted by Dr. Rauch, it revealed that use of social networking sites can alter face-to-face communication that make anxiety levels in people increase. In 2012, Anxiety UK conducted a survey on the use of social media and its effects on emotions of people especially children. The study reveals that 53% of people who were part of the study said it has affected their behaviour wherein 51% said it affected them negatively.
People who use social media said that they feel less confident because they constantly compare themselves with their friends. Furthermore, respondents recalled feeling less comfortable and difficulty in sleeping after internet and social media use.
Parents are advised some tips on how to monitor their child's use of social media sites like Facebook. It is recommended that parents know the passwords of their child's account in order to monitor messages, threads and activities. Furthermore, limiting the time for use of the internet is reiterated as well as spending quality time with them is recommended. Communication is very important in maintaining good emotional and mental health of kids.
