Problems

Gaming addiction is a BIG problem because it could lead to many and we mean MANY more problems. Addiction has 2 forms; physical addiction and mental addiction. Some mental addictions could lead to mood swings, distance from family, loss of interest in activities, trouble with school work etc. Some physical addictions could lead to changes in weight, gamer's thumb which is when the tendon in your thumb swells, trigger finger is when your finger gets stuck in one position and also obesity because gaming increases stress which leads to higher food intake and normally gamers don’t exercise etc.

35.6% of the entire world are gamers. That is more than 2.5 billion people. around 3.56% of the population is addicted to gaming. The average age of a gamer at night is 33 years old. More than a quarter of all the children in the world are gamers. That means that 588 million gamers in the world are under 18. Just a random fact did you know that 41.42%of Sweden are gamers (honestly it’s probably 90% because of minecraft). That is 4.2 million gamers!

Gaming addiction takes up useful time in the day that could be used to be productive. You could wash the dishes, play with your family, go outside, go swimming if it’s not winter, attempt a backflip! ok maybe not a backflip but you can do so many things!

Video games are addictive because they're so engaging and the video game developers want to make the game good but they also make it addictive. People that have mental issues play more video games because they feel a lot better about themselves and less lonely but it can also cause an addiction. Video game addiction can also be caused due to money spent in a video game and because of that you like it more. Video games like Minecraft are addictive because they make you feel calm and they lower your stress levels which is good if you are stressed.

Normally when you are happy your brain releases dopamine. But when it is released in an addictive way like drugs or sugar it can be very bad for you because it will make that thing the ONLY thing that makes you happy.Games that have in-game purchasable items in them could lead to gambling addiction which is very, VERY bad.

Current solution:

Set a play time for yourself or ask someone to set it for you. Try to keep any gaming opportunity away at night so you don’t start playing through the night. Try to do some other things than gaming like exercise, have some family time, SLEEP and many MANY other things.

With an interview with Lousie Miller who works for Göteborg University this is where this information comes from. If the child was interested in an activity before they were addicted to video games the parents should try to make the child do the activity and try to get the child to stop playing the video games for extended periods of time.

Our solution:

First of all you gotta do what we are doing because it lets you stop playing for a little while and you will figure out what else to do except for gaming Gaming GAMING! Also if you stop gaming you will probably play less video games. That's perfect!

Sources

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FktsFcooIG8

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/the-health-effects-of-too-much-gaming-2020122221645

Interview with louise miller

https://www.brainpop.com/health/personalhealth/addiction/