**TL;DR - Not all porn damages teenagers, unethical pornography damages teenagers. However, ethical pornography that practices the idea of consent and choice does not. As sex education is currently taught in schools at the most basic level, unethical porn is used as a tool by teenagers to learn about sex which is damaging.** The majority of pornography that exists on sites such as Pornhub is unethical porn. Firstly, it is made unethically which can be through sexual exploitation, revenge porn etc. Secondly, it does not practice important concepts such as consent or real-life sex situations. It is important to note that [some sites](https://theconversation.com/pornography-has-deeply-troubling-effects-on-young-people-but-there-are-ways-we-can-minimise-the-harm-127319) have equated an increase in anal sex and other types of sex with porn as a negative. However, this isn't inherently bad as long as it is practiced safely and with consent. I find the issue is that sex education in schools is not good enough. It doesn't teach enough about consent, sex for pleasure, masturbation, different forms of sex but rather takes the heteronormative angle of sex between a man and a woman in order to procreate. Additionally, you are taught the more you have sex, the more likely you are to get a disease (which is categorically untrue.) With this lack of education, teenagers have no choice but to turn to porn for information regarding sex. The porn websites they turn to are unethical sites that are free. [Meta-analyses](https://theconversation.com/pornography-has-deeply-troubling-effects-on-young-people-but-there-are-ways-we-can-minimise-the-harm-127319) – systematic research that synthesises multiple studies – from 2000 and 2015 have found associations between watching pornography and actual violent behaviours. Aggression, largely by males and overwhelmingly against females, is common in unethical pornography: an analysis of top-selling and top-renting titles found 88% of scenes showed aggression. [Men who use pornography](https://aifs.gov.au/publications/effects-pornography-children-and-young-people-snapshot) more often are more likely to practise or desire dominant, degrading practices, such as gagging and choking. And women who use pornography are more likely to practise or desire submissive practices. The difficulty I come to is that different people like different forms of sex. Whether this be bondage, restraints, sex toys etc. However, what unethical porn teaches is that this should be expected and that the male partner (in heterosexual porn) has to be the dominant and the woman the submissive. In teenagers this is reinforcing that idea that women should have no agency. However, ethical porn teaches the idea of consent by the individuals in the videos asking what the other person would like and both making a decision together based on preferences rather than expectations. Adding to this, in regards to wlw sex (women who love women,) unethical porn sites such as Pornhub portray sex as being for men. The videos are not realistic for wlw but are a performance for men. This can perpetuate the notion in teenagers that women have sex with each other for the satisfaction of men. As a gay woman I have experienced this from a teenager to now, men finding out and assuming I want a threesome or that I just haven't 'been with the right man'. This is damaging both mentally for wlw and can result in angry outbursts and violence from men when they are refused. If sex education doesn't improve teenagers will carry on watching porn as a source of information. Therefore, it is important that this porn be ethical and practice consent while teaching about the different forms of sex from an ethical and consensual lens that practices equality and choice between individuals.

**tl;dr. Pornography is for some teenagers the only form of sexual education they receive. This can be both a good thing and a bad thing. Porn, when used properly can be educational and also aid in masturbation. However, it can have negative effects if coupled with mental disorders and abnormalities.** First of all, pornography is only bad if it is unethical or involves minors/children. In most industries, and in the pornographic industry itself, porn is considered an art form because most of it is pure acting. Teenagers know that porn is acting. Unlike what some Asian governments use as cover for censorship, pornography does not **cause** sexual violence or any violence at all. Sexual violence is widely correlated with a lack of sex education. Porn is also one of the very few sexual displays for people of the LGBTQ+ community. Society is still not as accepting of the members of the community, and these are the few avenues where pleasure is derived and given to people of all groups and preferences. However, pornography addiction combined with mental health disorders can be harmful. Ted Bundy is an excellent example of the harmful effects it can have. Ted Bundy was allegedly addicted to pornography and was one of the main reasons he felt compelled to rape and murder a certain kind of woman. Pornography, just like everything else, is okay to use when regulated.

**Tl;dr: Porn can be damaging to teens as it can diminish the ability for young people to form a healthy relationship with real sex.** [Frequent porn consumption can make the brain integrate real sexual scenarios and media.](https://www.focusonthefamily.com/parenting/how-pornography-affects-a-teen-brain/) This makes young people believe that what they see in porn (e.g. non-consensual encounters, physical abuse or expecting sex all the time) is the reality of real sexual encounters. This mentality can leave many teens disappointed by the real experience or unable to enjoy sex as they are so inclined to what they have consumed their entire lives (which is often very hard to make the reality). A study by Owens et al also highlighted the potential dangers of pornography on adolescents. They identified : [Unrealistic sexual beliefs and values An over-focus or obsession on sex Sexually aggressive behaviours Sexually permissive behaviours An earlier interest in having sex](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/239798839_The_Impact_of_Internet_Pornography_on_Adolescents_A_Review_of_the_Research)

**TL;DR: Like other dopaminergic activities, pornography’s fickle “feel-good” fantasy land can exacerbate existing mental instabilities and drag life in a downward spiral. However, pornography can also add excitement and novelty to mentally mature, well adapted audiences’ sex lives.** Pornography’s effects depend on how and why it is used. It has long been known that pornography [acts on the brain’s reward center](https://fightthenewdrug.org/how-porn-changes-the-brain/) in a way that releases a cocktail of chemicals which provide a temporary buzz. One of these chemicals is a protein called [DeltaFosB](https://fightthenewdrug.org/how-porn-changes-the-brain/), which helps weave the strong neuronal connections that are necessary for learning any kind of new skill. However, once certain mental game-trails are so well-traveled that they become mental superhighways – and especially when they’re pathways that are integrated into the reward system – they can easily become conduits for compulsive, addictive behavior. According to [fightthenewdrug.org](https://fightthenewdrug.org/how-porn-changes-the-brain/), “DeltaFosB is referred to as the ‘molecular switch for addiction,’ because if it builds up enough in the brain, it switches on genes that create long-term cravings, driving the user back for more.” Because porn activates the same brain regions (and similar chemicals) as [alcohol, cocaine, and nicotine](http://marripedia.org/effects_of_pornography_on_adolescents), it’s similarly addictive to these substances. Gambling, shopping, and eating also happen to share space and neuronal pathways with these same cognitive reward-center regions. Yet despite each act being compelled by dopamine and involving the release of DeltaFosB, not everyone who gambles stays in the casino long enough to aerify their bank account, and not everyone who drinks ends up blacking out every weekday night. Nor does every cocaine using partygoer do the drug compulsively, nor does every sweet-toothed man or woman binge. Many of the aforementioned activities can be and are regularly enjoyed without interfering with a healthy lifestyle. Such behaviors become problematic, however, when their fickle chemical rewards are used to replace a stable sense of wellbeing that may otherwise be lacking from an individual’s life. [For instance](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/hbe2.193), “a recent study has shown that a feeling of loneliness is associated with the frequency of using sexually explicit Internet material among men (Weber et al., 2018). Some studies reported a link between use of pornography and low self‐esteem, and a few suggested that problematic use of pornography was positively correlated with lower levels of general self‐esteem.” When porn is viewed by mentally healthy individuals for pleasure and exploration, it can add small doses of excitement and novelty to one’s life. Yet when porn and other neurochemically rewarding behaviors are used to fill a lack of contentment, they mantle whatever psychological need was missing – be it social acceptance, love, goal accomplishment, etc.. Reliance on “feel-good” behaviors to replace natural psychological needs begets an insidious cycle where the individual becomes dependent on the facsimile for wellbeing, and so must constantly engage in it to stimulate certain “feel-good” neurotransmitters which mask the underlying depression, anxiety, or loneliness. This need for constancy is a compulsive symptom of addiction that replaces the desire to straighten one’s life circumstances or to engage in previously rewarding behaviors (reltionships, sex, career pursuit) In view of an apparent teenage mental health crisis, the younger generation may be more at risk to abuse, rather than use, pornography. According to [The Conversation](https://theconversation.com/the-mental-health-crisis-among-americas-youth-is-real-and-staggering-113239), “From 2009 to 2017, major depression among 20- to 21-year-olds more than doubled, rising from 7 percent to 15 percent. Depression surged 69 percent among 16- to 17-year-olds. Serious psychological distress, which includes feelings of anxiety and hopelessness, jumped 71 percent among 18- to 25-year-olds from 2008 to 2017.” With the backdrop of this health calamity, modern teens have extra obstacles to navigate in order to avoid porn abuse. Healthy use of pornography requires a self meta-awareness and maturity that is usually absent or only partially developed in adolescence. Although it’s possible to integrate porn into sex-lives in a non damaging way, today’s adolescents need to exercise caution and be apprised of their own modes of behavior before engaging in an activity with such an insidious underbelly as porn.