Video game addicts may get sickness status

By Linda Shrieves | The Orlando Sentinel • Published June 22, 2007

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ORLANDO, Fla. - So you think your teenager is addicted to Xbox?

You may be right - and if the prestigious American Medical Association has its way, video-game addiction could become a legitimate medical condition.

It may sound like a bunch of hooey to a nation of game enthusiasts, but next week, at the AMA's meeting in Chicago, delegates will vote on a recommendation that "Internet/video-game addiction" be classified as a formal diagnosis.

For 160 years, the AMA has made national health recommendations that are quickly adopted.

They range from recommending that all cars be equipped with seat belts to calling for annual mammograms for women older than 50.

Not everyone is buying into this new malady, though. Some might compare it to a gambling addiction, but others see this as a lightweight diagnosis, akin to a shopping addiction.

"I'm an addiction skeptic," said Steve Jones, a communications professor at the University of Illinois and a research fellow with the Pew Internet & American Life Project. "Just because any activity might interfere with other activities is not enough to call it an addiction."

An AMA report notes that the heaviest game players are those who play MMORPGs - massive multiplayer online role-playing games such as World of Warcraft.

Those players, says the AMA, are more likely to be socially isolated - and probably addicted.

That is no surprise to 17-year-old Eric Frisella of Orlando. Eric, who plays World of Warcraft, sometimes wonders whether he might be addicted to the game.

During the school year, he says he plays about 30 hours a week - often staying up until 1 a.m. playing every night.

"I can definitely see how it's possible for people to get addicted," Eric said. "There are times when I think I could be, but then I realize I can have a lot more fun hanging out in the real world with my friends."

In his practice, Dr. Joseph Keeley, an Orlando pediatrician, says he has seen evidence of addiction.

"There are some kids who clearly act like they're addicted, and, when you take them off, they'll go through withdrawal. They'll get irritable and hard to live with," Keeley said.