The Toll of Too Much Technology on Teens' Mental Health Susan Solecki MSN, DrPH (c), FNP-BC, PPCNP-BC ⁎ , Theresa Fay-Hillier MSN, DrPH (c), PMHCNS-BC Drexel University, College of Nursing and Health Professions, Three Parkway, Philadelphia, PA Received 5 August 2015; accepted 5 August 2015 “I'd rather give up a kidney than my phone” Philippa Grogan, 16 (Henley, 2010). “THE EASE OF accessibility along with the use of multiple electronic devices adds to a growing concern for potential harm for children from media exposure” (Solecki, McLaughlin, & Goldschmidt, 2014, p. 2). Media violence is one of the key social determinants of mental health harming individuals' psychological health causing negative consequences of fear, aggression, and desensitization (Begum, Khowaja, & Ali, 2012). Sixty percent of mental health providers reported having treated at least one patient with a concerning Internet experience in the past 5 years with over 50% of those being ≤ 18 years of age (Assem. Bill H-R, 1966, 2009). Offline bullying doubles the risk of suicide attempts by youth; however, cyberbullying triples the risk which may be the contributor to suicide being the third leading cause of death in adolescents (Boschert, 2013a, 2013b). The more teens report being addicted to the Internet or smartphones, the greater the correlation for psychopathology and problematic behavior such as depression, anxiety, and aggression (Boschert, 2013a, 2013b). The Neurobiology of Technology Use Within the past 20 years, violent behavior has been associated primarily with the social learning process in addition to hereditary factors (Cohen, 2011). In more recent studies, in addition to environmental and genetic factors, excessive exposure to aggressive and violent media has been linked to violent behavior in children (Anderson et al., 2003; Caban, 2008; Daly & Perez, 2009). Violence in the media has been shown to have biosocial effects on children. Violent media can impact a child's heart, brain, and central nervous system, subsequently effecting cognition which in turn can have untoward effects on the child's attitude and social behavior (Caban, 2008; Jarrett, 2005). Studies have been conducted on the effects of violent video games on the brain waves and central nervous systems (CNS) of adolescents while interact- ing with violent video games (Caban, 2008; Jarrett, 2005). The results of magnetic resonance image (MRI) brain scans conducted while teens played violent video games revealed suppression of certain physiologic chemistry in the anterior cingulated cortex and the amygdala, which are the regions of the brain regulating emotion. Adolescents who showed changes on MRI scans also demonstrated diminished positive emotion, empathy, rational cognition, and human reasoning (Caban, 2008; Jarrett, 2005). Of most concern, suppression of chemicals governing cognitive rationale and human reasoning predisposes the child to little or no empathy toward either individuals and/or to society. Youth excessively exposed to violent video games are singularly similar to soldiers engaged in battle potentially impacting children's social role within society (Caban, 2008; Jarrett, 2005; Jipguep & Phillip-Sanders, 2003). Sleep Disruption According to one study, 80% of teenagers sleep with their cell phones or place them in proximity to their beds and use TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT Editor: Karen Goldschmidt PhD, RN Karen Goldschmidt PhD, RN ⁎ Corresponding author: Susan Solecki, MSN, DrPH (c), FNP-BC, PPCNP-BC. E-mail address: sms46@drexel.edu. The more that teens reported being ad- dicted to the internet or their smartphones, the greater the corre- lation for psycho- pathology and problematic behavior. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2015.08.001 0882-5963/© 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Journal of Pediatric Nursing (2015) xx, xxx–xxx