In a tragic incident, a 17-year-old student, who was admitted to the Tirunelveli Government Medical College Hospital at midnight, earlier this week, has been found to suffer from dementia owing to addiction to online games.
A video that has been making rounds on social media, shows that the student was doing actions relatable to playing online games during the treatment. The police have launched an investigation into the video, which has spread rapidly on social media. It has been revealed that the affected student is hailing from Nanguneri of Tirunelveli district. Apparently, preliminary inquiries by doctors have revealed that he developed this mental illness due to playing games on his mobile phone for consecutive hours.
In the meantime, the parents, who admitted their son during the late hours of April 4, have reportedly absconded along with the boy in the early hours of April 5 without informing the hospital staff or doctors. The hospital management informed the matter to police who investigated the video that has been disseminated on social media.
Speaking to News18, Psychiatrist Panneerselvam said, “It is wrong to always be immersed in mobile phones. Try to look onto the mobile screens hardly for a total of one hour or less than two hours a day only when needed. Gazing at the mobile screens for hours can turn oneself into a kind of mental disease.”
He also added that online games are a bit risky as there are two types of games on mobile phones — online and offline games. While individuals who are in a team game are more likely to become addicted. If such children continue to play online games for hours at home, they should be advised by a psychiatrist to prevent it.
He also said, “Preventing such children from playing online mobile games can cause them psychological harm. Depression, physical exhaustion, and insomnia might occur and will be pushed to the point of not being able to concentrate on studies.”
The World Health Organization has warned of the dangers of online games. In an environment where the impact of online games has been high over the past few years, it is now more prevalent among the public. This can be prevented by parents spending time with their children while everyone in the home is talking to each other, Panneerselvam said.
“Encourage children and young people to switch from mobile games to reading habits. Make them be focused on sports including football, volleyball, hockey and cricket. They can also get rid of online games by sending them to music classes or dance classes. The government may seek to ban such online games. However, parents have a greater responsibility to protect their children and young people from being trapped in danger,” he said.
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