Being addicted to video games is officially a medical illness

Arcadia Kim was inspired by an incident at home to start a business that advises parents on forming healthy relationships between their kids and their screens.

The former studio operating chief at Electronic Arts Inc. was trying to get her then 10-year-old son away from a game of Minecraft. He then shockingly threw the iPad at her in frustration. 

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Among gamers, parents, and the medical community, there is a lot of debate regarding whether gaming addiction is a real thing. 

An addiction is based on a series of symptoms, according to the WHO. 

For example, it includes a lack of control over the impulse to play video games, a tendency to prioritise the thing at the expense of other interests or obligations, and continued or escalated involvement despite experiencing negative consequences. 

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Gaming disorder is more prevalent than compulsive gambling, according to a study by Matthew Stevens of the University of Adelaide in Australia.

In 2018, WHO member states voted gaming as an addiction hoping to add it to the organisation's disease classification list, which helps standardise health reporting and tracking worldwide. The change didn't come into effect until last month, a lag designed to give the health care industry time to prepare.

The last time the association classified a new addiction was in 2013, when it added gambling, said Paul Appelbaum, chair of the APA committee in charge of making such designations. 

Changes come slowly and "really need to be backed up by data if they're going to be widely accepted," he said

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We now await the measures that will be used to help those who are addicted.

Main Image Courtesy: Pixabay