Online Games: A Recreation That Has Turned Into A Disease

We often ask ourselves whether technology is a boon or a curse. Well technology is good as long as it acts as our slaves but when we allow it to rule over us it no longer remains a boon.
Humans by nature tend to be lazy and even though technology has made many things in life easier but it has only made us lazy not just physically but mentally as well. We no longer sit to write a letter, from emails we have come down to sending instant messages, we do not remember phone numbers as we used to do before because everything is stored in our mobiles. We do not remember birthdays till Face book pops up with a reminder. We no longer try to make an effort to remember spellings because the auto correct does it for us and we are using our brains less and less making it lazier by the day. We are actually making our brains blunt by not using it enough.
Children these days shun physical activity and spend a copious amount of time on mobiles or computers playing games. Medical and addiction experts and parents are increasingly becoming concerned about the amount of time children spend on their mobiles or computers playing online games. This has affected not just the physical activity of children but their sleep patterns, healthy eating and their studies as well. Playing online game has become an addiction amongst a great number of children worldwide.
Off late an online game PUBG has been in the news. In 2018 schools in Bangalore had to issue notice to the parents to keep children away from gaming after a 15 year old boy had to undergo treatment for PUBG addiction. A boy in Telengana committed suicide as he was reprimanded by his mother for playing PUBG.
In this age of technology it is practically not possible to keep children away from mobile phones and computers completely. However, parents need to set time limits and keep an eye to make sure that the children do not get addicted.
The effects of game addiction on children are many. Addicted children do not like to socialize and tend to get irritated at the slightest interference. These children also tend to hide or sneak out to play games alone fearing getting reprimanded. They also start lying. No physical activity leads to lack of appetite resulting in health issues and obesity.
Parents need to engage with children more and they themselves need to lead by example by cutting their own phone time, especially in front of children. Let them play but for stipulated time. Enroll children in extracurricular activities. Make sure that they children do not play alone on their own. Most importantly parents need to spend more quality time with children to save them from this menace of online game addiction.

By: Madhuchanda Saxena
Content: https://indianexpress.com/article/parenting/family/pubg-game-addiction-harmful-kids-tips-parents-5656715/