It's been well known for a while that mental health is deteriorating precipitously:When parents are asked to identify their top fears about the safety of their children, what do you think tops the list? According to a survey last year by Safehome.org, it’s not cars, strangers, or any other physical threat; it’s “internet/social media.” That’s not just for parents of teenagers and pre-teens, whose lives seem to revolve around their phones. It’s even true for parents of younger kids, ages 7-9 because every parent sees it coming and few know what to do about it. Parents don’t want their children to disappear into phones, as so many of their friends' children have; some resolve to wait until 8th grade, or later. Then their child hits them with the main argument that makes parents buckle: “But everyone else has a phone, so I’m being left out.”
Is it due to smartphones? The data says it is.
That's a pretty whopping impact, and makes a solid case that no one should use a smartphone until they are at least 18. The impact to mental health and stability for the rest of adult life is not worth it.
Young people are really suffering, and it's time that adults, parents, and responsible authorities stand up to what is destroying young lives.
Translation: If you want to see fewer school shootings, perhaps what's needed is fewer smartphones. If gun control is a good idea, then smartphone control is an even better idea. Keep these dangerous devices out of the hands of young impressionable children.