“Should teenagers have full time access to the Internet?” by Luiza S. (7A)

Should teenagers have access to the Internet? Nowadays, Internet is present in everyone’s life! Despite being nice and very useful, it can also harm people’s mental health! Scientists verified that being connected more than six hours a day can cause depression, anxiety, constant irritation, lack of hunger, and many other things! “Web addiction has the same diagnostic characteristics as those using psychoactive substances, which act on the central nervous system, and causes behavioral change.” says the site Terra Serviços.

This addiction to the Internet happens mostly with teenagers, because sometimes they feel like they need to isolate themselves from society to stay on the Internet, that for them, is a “safe world”. Teens with personal problems use the Internet as an “escape” of their lives, where they can be whatever they want. Although for many it is a solution for their problems, for others it is the cause of them. On the Internet, mostly on social media, people tend to show what they want to be: perfect. A lot of people feel inferior for not having that “perfect” life, and ends up developing depression.

The question is: how far would people go to have a “perfect” life? Many people become obsessed with having the perfect skin, perfect hair, perfect body, perfect day, perfect eating, and many other things. This is not healthy, and for this obsession, people can stop living their lives to start pretending it.

Another reason to stay “away” from the Internet is the danger. Internet is a very dangerous community. In social media like Instagram, Tik Tok, Facebook, and many others, you can send messages to other people. Sometimes, bad people send threatening messages, including offensive texts, harassing messages, and many other things.

Concluding, it is not bad for teens to spend some time on the Internet, as long as you do not use it for too much time. Being addicted to the Internet can cause mental health problems, like depression and anxiety, can make people start to isolate themselves from others, stay obsessed with having a “perfect” life, and exposing themselves to danger. Remember, it is always good to be safe on the Internet, so be careful!