Many studies have shown that the extensive use of social media can actually cause addiction to the users. Throughout their day, they feel to post something on their pages or check others posts as it has become an important part of our life.

The sharing feature available on the social networks makes your opinion about any topic reach huge number of people

If you are not careful, what you post on the Net can come back to haunt you. Revealing personal information on social sites can make users vulnerable to crimes like identity theft, stalking, etc.

Social networks offer the opportunity for people to re-connect with their old friends and acquaintances, make new friends, trade ideas, share content and pictures, and many other activities. Users can stay abreast of the latest global and local developments, and participate in campaigns and activities of their choice. Professionals use social media sites like LinkedIn to enhance their career and business prospects. Students can collaborate with their peers to improve their academic proficiency and communication skills. You can learn about different cultures and societies by connecting with people in other countries.

In fact, studies show that British companies have lost billions of dollars per year in productivity because of social media addiction among employees.

If you are not careful, unscrupulous people can target you for cyber bullying and harassment on social sites. School children, young girls, and women can fall prey to online attacks which can create tension and distress.

Unfortunately, there are a few downsides too to social networking. Many introverts and socially reclusive users place too much emphasis on virtual interaction, and ignore the real world outside. Read on to learn about a few more negative repercussions of social media.

Compared to television advertisements and other expensive forms of marketing, social media presence is a cheap

and drug use found that 70% of teenagers ages 12 to 17 use social media, and that those who interact with it on a daily basis are five times more likely to use tobacco, three times more likely to use alcohol, and twice as likely to use marijuana. In addition, 40% admitted they had been exposed to pictures of people under the influence via social media, suggesting correlation between the two factors.

Posts on social media many times present an idealized version of what’s happening, what something looks like, or how things are going. This can lead users to constantly compare themselves to others and think less of their own lives. If things are going particularly well for people in your newsfeed and you’re having a rough day, of course this will likely negatively affect your mood

A 2015 U.K. Office for National Statistics finds that children who spend more than 3 hours each school day on social media sites are more than twice as likely to suffer poor mental health. Their immersion in a virtual world may cause these children to experience delay in their emotional and social development.

Social networking sites make kids more self-centered.  Since Facebook  and other sites give kids their own page which is about them, it leads some vulnerable kids to think that everything revolves around them, a precursor for emotional problems in their later life.  This might also result in inability to empathize.

· They cause users to spend less time outdoors and to be less active.

Online interaction can become a substitute for actual meetings, which can hurt social development and isolate users.

recruit new members and spread their messages.

They provide another option for those looking to date but are unable to find the right person.

Kids who have disabilities or other challenges can communicate with other teens with similar problems

This can boost their self-esteem and help them practice their social skills.

But not all consequences of this technology are good ones. Like the way it has allowed us to hide behind screens and limited our social interaction face to face.

We can contact anyone around the world, at any time, with just a few keystrokes. It is free, unlike calling across the ocean, and live. We can also share elements of our life,

Non-profits are seeing the benefits of using social media for their awareness campaigns. Sites like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and others are a cost effective means of spreading the word and getting support.

Interactions and feedback from customers help businesses to understand the market

Net savvy companies are using social media to advertise their products

They have also served to rally people for a cause, and have inspired mass movements

Every politician worth his salt needs to jump on the social media bandwagon. This is because social websites have played an important role in many elections around the world

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