What is excessive use of social media

The internet has become an integral part of our daily life.  It has been seen over the last decade, the use of social media [Facebook, Twitter] has been increasing rapidly and especially the younger generations getting addicted to it.  Excessive use of social media is an addiction. Our health is largely determined by the social, economic, cultural, and physical environments we live in. 

The more time one has spent on social media can affects to health that can lead to cyberbullying, worse sleep quality, social anxiety, and depression. It is to be borne in mind that such unhealthy lifestyle encounter diseases and illness.

Most university students are glued to social media and excessive use of Facebook can have a negative impact on the physical health of its users. It is found that students frequently use social media [mostly Facebook] for news and social communication. 

Globally, about 3.1 billion people are using the internet on modern gadgets.  Now the social media [mainly Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and WhatsApp] is termed as a “global consumer phenomenon” and it is particularly popular among the young generation because of quickly delivers instant communication, and seeking information is very easy in our modern lives.

The overuse of technology may lead to psychological and physical issues, such as eyestrain and difficulty focusing on important task, and it has also significant impact on developing children and teenagers.  Moreover, it tends to low self-esteem, personal dissatisfaction, hyperactivity, and even lack of affection.

For graduates and undergraduates, these social media platforms are highly used.  Technology with the use of the internet plays an important role in their academic success. But we should know the proper handling of social media i.e. mainly depend on the purpose and frequency of its use.  With the instant of the internet, we can communicate with friends and family give a greater positive result, lower stress and better psychological functioning.

On the other hand, excessive use of the internet leads to gaming and gambling resulted in depression.  It has been seen that the individuals are preoccupied with electronic games, search, and recreational activities, thus lead to neglect of sporting and aerobic exercise, familial communication, and societal accomplishments.

According to the study, young users, who are actively and emotionally involved in their digital lives reported worse sleep, higher anxiety, and depression.  By using social media consistently one can be associated with a decrease in happiness and an increase in depression.  Spending more than 3 hours on social media per day puts at a higher risk for mental health problems.  14% of kids ages 11-17 report depression and 34% report anxiety. 25% of 18 to 25-year-olds report mental illness.

Quote --“Branded Research, 2018: Respondents cited notifications from and the presence of social media to be the biggest distraction, blurring the line between work and personal life” unquote.

The relevant question is how the excessive use of social media and technology is proving harmful?  How social media impacts health problems on youth and what is the solution?

There is a difference in using social media-- addicts Vs non-addicts. But those who are social media addicts are likely to have physical symptoms than non-addicts, which include - backache, headache, neck pain, shoulder pain, wrist pain, a strain of the eyes, neck problems, and myopia.

Perceptibly, social media has become an integral networking habit in our daily life.  Anything in excess is known to cause problems and usage of social media is no exception to the rule.

Internet is a boon, but the student should use the internet only when they need it.  It is obvious that social media has many positive effects on education including better communication, timely information, socializing online, learning, enhancing skills, making a career among others. 

But there is a possibility of social media can be distracting, but in the modern technology, it does not mean that one cannot use it.  You have to beat the distraction i.e. causing not banishing.  It is ok to use within the limits and obviously doing a good way of doing is to set a schedule for checking social media.

Recommendation for healthy habits of social media:

• They should focus more on the study and reduce time spent on social media
• Students should engage more in physical exercise
• If they have to stay on the internet for a long duration, they should take a break and engage in some freehand exercise
• To overcome the sleeping disturbances student should stop the use of the screen at least 1 hour before going to bed.
• Awareness programs have to be undertaken to inform students of the negative impacts of excessive Social Media use.
• Focus on your real-life friends.
• Limit the time you spend scrolling each day
• Follow people and pages that bring you joy
• When you are out and about, live in the moment.
• Take a break.

The pertinent question is how to maintain the relationship between the use of social media and users' health.  We cannot ignore the social media in the daily lives of a student. It should be remembered that excessive use of social media leads to economic, physical, and psychological problems such as over-expenditure, eye problems, headaches, sleep disturbances, etc.

Perceptibly, social is healthy it helps sharpen memory and cognitive skills, increases one’s sense of happiness and well-being but it is important that each user should monitor the time of use and practice control by limiting their use and also keeping their eyes at a healthy distance from phones and not using them very frequently.