Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have become an important part of daily life for pre-teens and teens. With the time, energy and emotions that young people devote to social media, it begins to have negative effects on young people's health and well-being. The possible positive effects of social media are far overshadowed by the devastating negative effects it has on our youth. According to American Academy of Pediatrics physicians O'Keeffe and Clarke-Pearson, social media improves communication, social relationships, and relationships among preteens and teens. and technical skills. Social media sites offer young people the opportunity to communicate with their friends outside of school and share photos and videos with anyone they want. “According to a recent survey, 22% of teens log into their favorite social networking site more than 10 times a day, and more than half of teens log into a social networking site more than once a day.2 Seventy-five percent of teens now own a cell phone and 25% use them for social media, 54% for texting, and 24% for instant messaging” (O’Keeffe, Clarke-Pearson). With all the time young people spend online, this means that much of their development happens while they are connected. This is a problem because not everything tweens and teens encounter online is positive or safe. When on the web, children are vulnerable to hackers, predators and scams who can take advantage of them and exploit their innocence to believe that no one would try. to harm them (Barnes, Laird). But unfortunately, this is not true. There are people on the Internet who are dangerous to teens and preteens and pose a big threat to children who don't know how to protect themselves online. Through this... middle of paper...... they can make friends and interact with people in real life. This develops the social and communication skills they will need throughout their lives. When they have these skills, they are more confident in expressing themselves among friends or in class. Social media has positive effects that everyone can benefit from, especially teens and tweens. But there are also negative aspects which are very dangerous and should not be taken lightly. This poses a great threat to the mental and physical health of young people. The most serious threat is cyberbullying, and teens and tweens need to be wary of this relatively new form of bullying. They should be careful when deciding to say or post something online and think about who might see it and who it might affect. Social media is not entirely harmful, but its aspects and capabilities can have devastating effects on young people..