There is a global pandemic that has silently gripped our homes and communities, the consequences of which are far reaching, impacting various arenas of society. Marriage, education, general relationships, mental health, and spiritual wellbeing to name but a few. A pandemic which has taken a hold of the lives of many young men, and unfortunately women too, although to a far lesser degree. The pandemic of digital lust i.e., pornography.
Readily available research and statistics paint a very bleak and alarming picture, one that should push us towards taking action to protect ourselves, families, and the wider community at large, whether Muslim or non-Muslim. In the month of October 2024 alone, one of the leading websites for the filthy medium of pornographic content had over 4 billion visits worldwide! Bear in mind that this is only one website, and yet in only one month it received traffic equivalent to half of the global population. This placed it within the top 10 most visited sites for that month globally. Considering that there is a swamp of such websites receiving billions of visitors every month, and the widespread ease of access to such filth today, the scope of this pandemic becomes clear.
Statistics & Findings
Findings that go back 12 years now indicated that three of five participants of a selected research sample were struggling with Internet pornography addiction, and it was found to be most prevalent in men who lived alone or with their parents. We can only imagine how bad things have become since then.
In the UK, more recent surveys have shown that “82% of men watch pornography regularly, while a third of British males say they first watched it before the age of 15 – some as young as six.”
Perhaps the most alarming issue for us is that research indicates the vast majority of pornography consumption takes place through smartphones. Mobile traffic consistently accounts for over 80–90% of visits to major pornography sites.
Child Access to Smartphones and Pornography
Let us now factor in the research regarding child and adolescent mobile phone use, with research online showing that as of 2023, 24% of 3–4 year olds owned a smartphone, 26% of 5–7 year olds in the UK owned one while three-quarters use a tablet (76%), and the number significantly rose amongst 8–11 year olds, with 60–61% of those surveyed owning a smartphone, the number significantly increasing again to 96% amongst 12–15 year olds.
Children & Pornography Exposure
Another alarming issue, and one which highlights the importance and need for vigilance, is the manner and age at which children and young people are exposed to pornography.
According to a study for the children’s commissioner for England, children are being exposed to online pornography from as young as nine years old! The BBC reports, “A quarter of 16–21 year olds first saw pornography on the internet while still at primary school, their report suggests that by the age of 13, 50% had been exposed to it. It’s not only the young age of exposure which is alarming, but also the manner; in a nationally representative survey of more than 1,000 16–21 year olds, 38% had found pornographic content accidentally.”
High Rates of Adolescent Exposure & Oblivious Parents
A study across six European countries observed that 54% of adolescents were exposed to online pornography, with 24% watching it on a weekly basis. Nationally representative surveys of adolescents in America found that 68.4% of adolescents surveyed were exposed to online pornography. A 2016 Spanish study of a population ranging between 13 and 17 years old found that 60% of boys and 11% of girls used the internet for sexual activities. What is more alarming is that with the statistics showing such high rates of exposure amongst children and adolescents to pornography, 75% of parents surveyed believe their children have never been exposed to it.
Research concludes that child and adolescent access to pornography has soared to such a degree in the last decade that it can now be deemed a public health problem. With 80–90% of pornography being accessed via mobile phones, the above statistics are extremely worrying.
Parental Supervision & Responsibility
The above statistics related to child access of smartphones, and the dangers that lurk, highlights the extreme importance of parental supervision and guidance regarding smart devices. Parents should delay providing children with smart devices for as long as possible. Recent studies show a significant link between children who have access to smartphones before the age of 14 and depression, and various studies highlight the negative impact of smart devices on child and adolescent mental health. With this in mind, perhaps a starting point is to delay giving children such devices until they are at least 14 years old, and even then, this is still a very young age.
When we do eventually give our children smart devices, we should make sure to install parental supervision and gatekeeping tools such as Qustodio or other programs and apps. A person may honestly trust their child, but it is not simply a matter of trust… you may trust a young person in their ability to drive, but are they mature enough to deal with the dangers and pressures of being on the road and interacting with other drivers? Likewise with smart devices, you are opening them up to a very dangerous world, one which masks and hides the dangers beneath bright lights and “entertaining” concepts, games, and trends. Extreme caution is to be taken!
Underlying Issues & Reasons for Pornography Use
Research online suggests there are various factors and contributing elements to consistent and sustained use of pornography, particularly in men. As highlighted above, exposure from a young age and subsequent normalisation of use is a causing factor, but there are others:
The dopamine effect — it becomes an addiction, a digital drug. “Viewing sexually explicit material triggers a surge of dopamine, similar to what occurs with other addictive behaviours.”
Another significant factor is the use of pornography as a means of emotional medication. “Porn is usually medicating a wound of some kind. There’s almost always a trigger behaviour such as loneliness, anxiety or depression that leads someone into it. The same is true of attachment avoidance – where true intimacy feels frightening or too vulnerable, so a pornography relationship feels much safer.”
Similarly, it is being used as an attempt to alleviate mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or a coping mechanism for high levels of stress, or a form of escapism.
Dissatisfaction with intimacy patterns or relationship difficulties is also cited as a reason for the development of a porn problem — and perhaps we can add to this making marriage difficult amongst our young adult children, not recognising their biological and physiological needs and preventing them from marriage when they are ready.
A darker contributing factor – and perhaps more prevalent than we assume – is the trauma of sexual abuse or molestation. “Survivors of sexual abuse often face complex psychological issues that can manifest in various ways, including porn addiction.”
Consequences
Psychological impact parallel to sexual-abuse PTSD: the link between pornography and sexual abuse is not one way. Research suggests it goes in both directions. Sexual abuse has been found to be a causing factor in the development of pornography addictions, but likewise the impact of pornography use by children has been found to mirror post-traumatic symptoms of child sexual abuse: “Many of the psychological consequences observed in young pornography consumers could align with post-traumatic symptoms experienced following childhood sexual abuse.”
Addiction & dysfunctional emotional regulation: prolonged exposure to pornography is known to lead to addiction and habituation; research suggests this leads to a blunted capacity in processing pleasurable stimuli and also increases sensitivity to negative stimuli. A clinical term has in fact been coined — Problematic Pornography Use (PPU) — now associated with emotional avoidance motives, difficulties in emotion regulation, and dysfunctional stress coping. This illustrates that the consumption of pornography directly starts to impact a person’s personality and interaction with the world around them.
It is important to note that, as Muslims and in accordance with Islam, all use of pornography is problematic. Regardless of age, amount, or reason for use, there is no safe level of consumption, and so any consumption of pornography for us as Muslims (and likewise other followers of Abrahamic faiths) is deemed to be problematic.
Divorce & breakdown of intimacy in marriage: due to the flattening effect of pornography on the consumer’s emotions, and the dependency that develops, long-term consumption leads to a loss of emotional connection to real-life experiences. This ultimately leads to a breakdown in intimacy between spouses, with divorces now taking place due to the use of pornography and a lack of ability to find satisfaction through normal marital relations.
Studies exploring the relationship between pornography use and harmful sexual attitudes conclude that “there is substantial evidence of an association between the use of pornography and harmful sexual attitudes and behaviours towards women.” This is significant, as perversion begins with an attitude and mindset, which then manifests as behaviours later on.
Mental health: a sample of university students surveyed reported that “17.0%, 20.4%, and 13.5% of students reported severe or extremely severe levels of depression, anxiety and stress, respectively, with compulsive pornography use significantly affecting all three mental health parameters in both sexes.” As Muslims, when we add to this the fact that it is clearly impermissible to view such content, this guilt will be magnified, and the impact it will have on our relationship with Allah will be severely felt.
Moving Forward
The weight of such statistics should not only be considered by young people, parents, and consumers of pornography, but also by pastoral institutions and centres of religion. Such institutions are often the first point of contact within the Muslim community for dealing with our problems, including marital and mental health issues. It is not only a point of pre-empting the problems of tomorrow, but of addressing the wrongs of today — this is a religious obligation.
Why do their rabbis and scholars not forbid them from saying what is sinful and consuming what is unlawful? Evil indeed is their inaction!
The Prophet ﷺ said, “Beware, every one of you is a guardian and every one of you shall be questioned with regard to his trust… The Caliph is a shepherd over the people and shall be questioned about his subjects. A man is a guardian over the members of his family and shall be questioned about them. A woman is a guardian over the household of her husband and his children and shall be questioned about them…” We are all responsible in addressing this pandemic. Masajid, institutions of pastoral care, and community leaders need to proactively address this hidden pandemic.
Hayah (Modesty) & The Islamic Character
Islam, a framework relevant to all aspects of life, establishes haya (modesty) as an essential component of a Muslim’s character in all arenas of his or her life. Emphasis is placed heavily on haya throughout, especially on lowering one’s gaze and looking away from that which is indecent.
﴾ O Prophet!﴿ Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and guard their chastity. That is purer for them. Surely Allah is All-Aware of what they do.
The Prophet ﷺ said, “There is a piece of flesh in the body — if it becomes good (reformed) the whole body becomes good, but if it gets spoilt the whole body gets spoilt, and that is the heart.” Pornography is an attack on the spiritual heart, and so it is also an attack on the purity of one’s Islam and relationship with Allah. All efforts must be made to protect our hearts, and in doing so our bodies, our spiritual health, and the spiritual health of our communities at large.
The Sufferers & Consumers
Firstly, know that Allah is the most merciful. He forgives and is waiting for us to repent so that He can forgive us. If pornography consumption has become a problem of addiction and dependency, then seek help — do not wait until the negative consequences are being seen in your life or relationships to act. Seek help now and liberate yourself from the trap of Shaitan and his allies.
May Allah grant us all steadfastness and protect us from the wickedness of our own selves and the traps laid for us by Shaitan the accursed and his helpers and allies, amin.
Originally published as Pornography: Polluter of Homes, Destroyer of Minds & Marriages on the Lewisham Islamic Centre website.Read the original →