The surge of technology has made gaming a multi-dimensional experience for teenagers. Gaming has become an integral part of their lives which cannot be replaced by any other parallel alternatives.
Initially, when computers were in their infancy, gaming was just an escape from the boredom of the day-to-day life of many teenagers. It was a part of their daily activities, which was fun and contributed to their cognitive skills and social interaction. With the emergence of technology, gaming patterns developed miraculously.
Various gaming alternatives are now accessible, specifically designed to cater to the preferences of youngsters. The evolution of gaming consoles and the economical price structure has only affected teenagers adversely. This hyper-stimulating activity can result in major implications for the body and mind.
Let us dive into the potential complications that extreme gaming can cause among teenagers.
Health Altering Effects Of Gaming On Teenagers
- Gaming Addiction: The amount of time dedicated to gaming is crucial as some teenagers develop an uncontrollable gaming addiction. This negatively impacts their personal life, education, and health. The overwhelming urge to play consumes their time and energy resulting in a compulsive behavioral pattern.
- Isolation: Gaming-addicted teens spend most of their time on screen, isolating them from having and enjoying social life. Their only idea of fun is spending immeasurable time on the screen. This sedentary lifestyle contributes to multiple health problems. The risk of obesity, cardiovascular problems, back pain, and insomnia is common among gamers.
- Aggression: Excessive gaming can build weak emotional balance among teenagers. Multiple violent games are easily accessible to teenagers. Research shows that overexposure to such violent content is associated with aggression and stormy behavioral patterns. Gaming addiction and resultant compulsive behavior disrupt the teen’s mental health.
- Health Hazards: Overexposure to the screen can result in vision problems. Poor posture during the excessive gaming session can result in musculoskeletal problems that can remain a lifetime. Excessive gaming can contribute to multiple health hazards.
- Attention & Memory: The negative impact of long-term gaming also includes short attention span and memory loss. The teenagers fail to focus or concentrate on a particular activity. This can affect their academic performance and grades.
- Stress: Extensive gaming can sometimes be a coping mechanism for other problems. Momentarily pleasure derived from gaming cannot resolve the actual concern. They find it difficult to address the real problems.
- Clueless: The engaging nature of gaming compared to other physical activities attracts teenagers. Once they are addicted to the norm of excessive gaming, they lack motivation for other activities, including academics. Gradually, they find other activities less interesting or mundane over time.
- Improvised Diet: Gaming for several hours can make teenagers forget about food and hydration. The screen becomes their priority depriving the body of essential nutrients for functioning. If this continues for the long term, this can affect the functioning of major organs or result in diseases, including cancer.
Resolving The Gaming Addiction
Let us explore the solving methods for the gaming addiction problem:
- Proper Awareness: Teaching teenagers to set screen time boundaries is mandatory. The potential risk of any addiction and its long-term effect on mental and physical health needs to be addressed.
- Diverse Activities: Various sports activities can help reduce screen time among teenagers. This can make them physically strong and mentally sharp. If they are reluctant for physical activities, engage them in activities like chess, carrom board, and other card games.
- Parental Involvement: Teenagers should be actively monitored by their parents. They shouldn’t be allowed to have unlimited screen time. There should be restrictions to maintain a substantial equilibrium between gaming, studying, and sleeping time. Maintain a functional timetable for their day-to-day activities.
- Professional Help: Gaming addiction can damage the entire future of teenagers. Before landing into severe psychological issues, parents are strictly advised to consult a mental health expert specializing in gaming addiction.
Symptoms Of Having Gaming Addiction
Identifying the problem is the first step toward solving it. Let us explore the signs of teenagers with gaming addiction. If your teenager displays the mentioned signs, they might be a victim of gaming addiction. Look out for these warning signs.
- Happiness is playing games.
- Limited social interaction
- Gaming as a relief from a bad mood
- Always thinking about gaming
- Less interest in academics
- Less sleep, poor diet, and weak hydration
Read More:- ADHD Burnout Symptoms In Adolescents – How Will It Affect Their Health?
Conclusion
The significant health, psychological and cognitive impact on teenagers due to extreme gaming needs to be treated at the earliest. Although gaming might appear to be a relaxing, dopamine-infusing activity, the other side of this reality can have disastrous effects.
Providing adolescents with appropriate supervision and implementing necessary limitations is crucial for effectively guiding them through the digital era, a period characterized by widespread technological advancements. This responsibility mostly falls on parents and teachers.
Adolescents are susceptible to the deleterious aspects of the digital realm. It is imperative to possess a comprehensive understanding of the importance of time management.
Promote the establishment of an open communication approach with them. Multiple studies have shown evidence linking game addiction to a notable role in the development of depression among adolescent individuals.
Let us identify the consequences of this on our future generation and take substantial steps accordingly.
