When I go on Instagram, Twitter or simply just walk around in public, I see little kids posting away, or with their face stuck in a phone. When I was a little kid, I played with Barbies, played outside with my friends, rode my bike and even just went on little adventures in my backyard. Being a teenager with all of the stress I have in my life now makes me want to be that age again, but not with a phone.

If I would’ve had a smartphone as a little kid, my childhood wouldn’t have been fulfilled. Of course, when I was a kid I wanted one, but being 17 now, I am happy my parents didn’t give me one until I was older.

I believe a good age to get a phone is when you reach the age where you actually need one. I got my first phone in middle school, which was appropriate for me. This is when I started staying after school for sports and hanging out with my friends more, so my parents needed to know when I had to be picked up and where I was. Kids in elementary school, however, don’t need to contact their parents because the parents should know where their kids are at all times anyways. Some kids most likely only use it to play games or get on social media. Of course this is fun for them, but do they really need a personal phone just for entertainment? No, they need to be playing with toys, participating in sports and reading books.

Phones also have an affect on social skills that are taught in elementary school. If a little kid has their face stuck in a phone all of the time, then when will they ever know how to have face to face conversations? According to the Huffington Post, children do not know how to properly handle face to face conversations, because they interact so much with each other through technology. In preschool and elementary school, they are taught good manners, how to make friends and social lessons that they will use for the rest of their lives. Phones can limit that and the world around them.

Not only are kids harming themselves by this unhealthy behavior, but some kids don’t know their boundaries when it comes to privacy either. They can put anything online without supervision. Going online allows kids to be exposed to the violence and negative things that social media has to offer. Little kids just aren’t mature enough to handle those things yet.

Smartphones can also give off radiation which can affect kids at a young age. In a study by Professor Om Gandhi at the University of Utah, it was discovered that radiation penetrates the brain of a child 4.2 times faster than an adult brain, and a child’s eye more than 12 times faster.

With all of the health risks and social issues resulting in smartphones for little kids, I think that our generation should come together and set societal ages and time limits on phones for our future children. Not only will it benefit the child’s future, but our relationships with our children as well.