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The Current

The Student News Site of Ocean Lakes High School

The Current

The Student News Site of Ocean Lakes High School

The Current

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Decline of children outdoors poses threat to adolescent health

Sawyer Lake Estates Park, a park in the Ocean Lakes area, remains empty on May 16, 2024. It was once a popular park but is now frequently empty due to the effects of kids not going outside.
Casey Weldon
Sawyer Lake Estates Park, a park in the Ocean Lakes area, remains empty on May 16, 2024. It was once a popular park but is now frequently empty due to the effects of kids not going outside.

After COVID struck the world, playgrounds turned empty, and social media engulfed younger generations; kids today are more absorbed in technology than ever.

The virus forced kids to avoid going outdoors to have fun, which took a huge toll on the world. 

Newer generations spent their childhood indoors, lacking the experience that older generations had when they were younger. This caused the newer generation to get addicted to cellular devices, especially since school was done through a screen during the pandemic. 

Playgrounds were empty for a long time and getting back on track seemed impossible.

With newer generations turning into pre-teens after COVID settled down, the priorities of preteens have transitioned from playing outside to school work and other activities due to growing up. Kids are now addicted to cellular devices and apps such as TikTok, SMS and Instagram.

People see playgrounds empty, but never see a kid without a phone.

The term “iPad kid” became popular after toddlers in public had a tablet in their hands constantly. People can go anywhere and see at least one or two kids on a cellular device no matter what age. 

Thankfully, fewer playgrounds look empty in 2024 after the virus has died down, but that doesn’t mean every kid is playing outside. 

Social media still has a huge toll on kids not playing outside anymore.

A survey was put out that concluded that in 2022  the United States observed 68 percent of pre-teens using social media, according to statista.com.

Instead of the virus acting as the problem of kids not going outside anymore, it has now moved to technology and social media being the main problem. A solution for this is for teens to take phone breaks and for parents to restrict time on devices.

With those solutions, there can be an increase in children going outside.

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About the Contributor
Casey Weldon
Casey Weldon, Staff Writer
Casey Weldon is a sophomore and a first-year journalist for The Current. She loves her family and friends, she has one older sister and 2 cats. In her free-time, she loves to read, write, take photos, play guitar and listen to music. Casey hopes to look into doing more photography and to write articles for The Current.

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