Social media should not dictate how someone feels about themselves, but it seems to be becoming more and more common.

Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and Facebook all have one thing in common and that is the negative effect each platform has on its users.

More than a billion people have an active Facebook account and over 100 million users log into Instagram every month, according to a press release on Facebook’s news site.

With that many people using social media platforms it comes as no surprise that so many people equal their worth to the amount of friends they have or how many likes their photos get.

There is a strong association between social media and self and body positivity. Psychologists found evidence linking social media usage to poor body image, dieting, and a drive for thinness and self-objectification in young people, according to 2017 research published by The Journal of Research on Adolescence. Too many teenagers and young adults equate their self worth with social media profiles which ends up being such a huge negative impact on our lives.

“Social media has the ability to tear people down because it’s all about the likes and how much people look at your profiles. It all just matters too much,” said junior communications major Ebun Osayemi.

The different social media entities influence the users by using public figures and exposing secrets and lies. Snapchat has multiple news sites on its app talking about the famous and all the Hollywood rumors.

By Snapchat doing this, it also has a huge influence on the users, and the impacts it can cause are astonishing.

A survey that included the Generation Y and millennial generations found that social media sites, like Instagram, contributed to a generation with body image and body confidence issues, according to a May report by the Royal Society for Public Health.

During the month of January, 88 percent of adults in the United States had a social media profile, according to a Pew Research Center Study. There is also at least 800 million monthly users on Instagram alone, according to a Sept. 18 statement by the vice president of Global Marketing Solutions at Facebook, Carolyn Everson. With this many users taking up social media profiles it’s no wonder that people are comparing themselves to others and letting social media run their lives.

People need to take a step back from the computer and phones and focus on true happiness and fulfillment that social media isn’t giving them.

Social media is running people’s self esteem, and it shouldn’t happen. Instead, they should start owning their self worth and looking at other outlets to promote their happiness. Social media is doing more harm than good.