Children have always been interested in what adults are up to. They tend to copy our behavior, appearance, and habits. And they are interested in adult content, too.
A couple of decades ago, young people could watch adult movies only on videotapes and DVDs that parents carefully hid in a wardrobe or desk drawer. Now, kids and teens can find porn anywhere on the Internet and watch it at any time of the day.
The global online porn market was estimated to be worth $35.17 billion in 2019. And it is predicted to keep growing as more people get access to smartphones, including kids.
The growing sales of mobile devices have made access to online porn easier than ever. Children can find it by googling the needed keywords on their phones. And they don’t even have to sign up, as low-quality porn videos are accessible for free.
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Why Kids Shouldn’t Watch Porn
While adults can find porn videos educational and entertaining, the same pieces of content can negatively impact kids. If you started watching porn at a young age, you might have experienced a stronger wish to initiate sexual relations than your peers who avoided watching adult movies.
Researchers say that the earlier a man starts to watch pornography, the more likely he is to harbor sexist attitudes to a woman. In particular, young porn fans are more likely to express dominant behavior toward their partners. Most obviously, this can lead to unhealthy relations and disappointment in the romantic aspect of life.
Teens who watch porn at an early age may conclude that they do not necessarily need to be affectionate toward another person to have sex. This can lead to earlier and promiscuous sexual behavior that can result in early pregnancy.
How to Prevent Your Children From Watching Porn
If your kid was caught watching porn, it’s natural for you to take their phone or tablet away immediately. However, before you do that, think about the consequences.
Eventually, your child will become older and engage in relations with another person. Will they feel comfortable coming to you for relationship advice when difficulties arise? Or would they hide their problems because you used to scold them for being interested in sex?
We’re not saying that you should let your kids watch porn. We’re only suggesting that you deal with it more smoothly.
Talk to Your Kids About the Negative Impact of Porn
The number one spot in your porn-fighting action plan is a serious, age-appropriate conversation with your child.
We recommend that you not criticize or shame your kid for watching porn. Instead, ask them why they want to watch it and how they feel about what they’ve seen.
If you have a teen, who is exposed to online pornography, teach them critical thinking. Explain that the picture on the screen is only a movie and isn’t a reflection of healthy relationships between two people.
Teens need to learn how to analyze what they see on the Internet and in real life. They also need to make conclusions based on their priorities and wishes rather than those shown in a film.
If your children are too young for a straight conversation, consider speaking their language. As an example, you can talk about Superman and his supernatural abilities. Explain that in real life, people can’t fly. But in movies, they do. Or, you can say that animals who talk in a cartoon don’t speak English in reality.
Restrict Adult Content With Parental Controls
Restricting adult content on your kid’s device is another option to cope with pornography. You can set parental controls using the device’s settings, browser features, and built-in app restrictions.
You can limit specific types of content on Apple gadgets. In iOS 11, you can even restrict voice searches in Siri and prevent the Safari browser from launching at all.
If your kid looks through inappropriate content via a web browser, you can set parental controls right in there. You can also use native parental control features in apps like Netflix and YouTube so that any device is kid-friendly.
Monitor Your Kid’s Device and Block Porn With mSpy
If you don’t think that kids should watch porn at any age, you can block porn completely. But how can you do it without violating your kid’s privacy and accessing their accounts on various apps and web browsers?
A parental control app, such as mSpy, can be a solution. After you install it on your child’s device, you immediately get access to advanced monitoring functionality.
With mSpy, you can check out your kids` browsing history, bookmarks, and visited websites. You can also block or restrict inappropriate ones, such as porn streaming channels and dating apps.
What’s more, mSpy makes it possible to detect and block online predators who seek victims to abuse. And finally, you can see your kid’s real-time location and prevent them from meeting up with abusers in real life.
Summing Up
Many researchers agree that kids should be educated about relationships and sex at a young age. They also believe that having a conversation about sex with your kid is the best way to prevent youngsters from making mistakes in the future.
However, leaving a teen’s computer or mobile phone without any limitations can be dangerous. You can’t entirely rely on your child’s good conscious of protecting them from peer influence. So, monitoring their device is a proven and safe way to deal with kid porn.
It’s good to know that parental control apps can help by letting you know what your child is up to online.
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