What type of impact can phones have on students’ everyday lives and mental well-being? Students across U.S. schools now more than ever spend a mass amount of time on their phones and technology, but what are the effects of the mass consumption of data through phones on a frequent basis? Much evidence actually supports that too much time on phones can have many negative impacts on a student’s life and mental health. It can affect everything from their sleep schedule to the way that they compare their life to others. 

“Social media shows lives aren’t real right, and when that does become reality, it gives students a false sense of what’s actually going on in peoples’ lives, and then they start comparing themselves to other people’s lives,” said Catherine Dodd, a psychology teacher.

Phones feed a student’s mind so much information daily that it’s become harder for students to maintain a good attention span. Students can be distracted from notifications, music, and the all-around urge to go on their phones. Students can develop a need to go onto their phones and feel connected to the rest of the world that distracts them from reality.

 “It’s really hard to sustain attention just in general, so the attention span starts to get lower and lower and lower… phones in class give students instant gratification,” Dodd said. 

Students value their phones as a connection to the rest of the world. It keeps them in contact with everyone and makes sure they know about all the new events going on. Students stated that they cannot spend extended periods of time without it and want to just be on it. 

“Not very long. I feel like people wouldn’t like- I feel like people would think I’m dead,” said senior Zoe Vizconde.

Phones project a blue light from their screens. This blue light that is projected actually affects the chemical melatonin in your brain. This is the chemical responsible for sleep in a human brain, when a student keeps their phone close to them it can act against the melatonin in your brain resulting in loss of sleep for the student. 

“I never hold the phone up to my face, like before I’m gonna go to bed or I atleast try not to for about an hour,” Dodd said.