Phones, laptops, tablets, computers: the internet is at the tip of everyone’s fingers.
According to the Pew Research Center, 96% of U.S. teens use the internet every day, and 46% of them say they’re online almost constantly.
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That’s a big increase from 2014 to 2015, where only 24% of teens reported being online.
Now 95% of teens have access to a smartphone, and the average teen spends 7 hours and 22 minutes looking at screens every day, which leads to some risks.
So how can you spot an addiction?
“We might not be physically active. We may not be getting sufficient sleep. We may not be interacting with people in person,” said Dr. Kate Eshleman, a pediatric psychologist at Cleveland Clinic.
And be sure to check their academics. A recent study found that teens with internet addiction have disrupted signaling between brain regions that control attention and working memory. This can make it hard for teens to focus on schoolwork.
“Just by the nature of being on the screen, and I think it could also look at what we’re being exposed to. We know that social media has a lot of impact on people’s mood,” Eshleman said.
Moods like becoming agitated or mad when their time online is interrupted or limited.
Staying up late or waking up in the middle of the night to continue online activities are also signs. That can lead to more sleep deprivation. The CDC says almost 73% of high school students don’t get enough sleep.
So, what can you do?
Create tech-free zones, like keeping devices out of the kitchen. A survey by Pew Research found that 74% of teens feel happy when they don’t have their phones with them.
Set up parental controls! Apps like bark.us and Aura can help monitor and limit online access.
Another way is to sit down and talk with them. When you do talk with your teen, educate them about the potential negative risks of being addicted to the internet and instead encourage them to do activities outside.