Children’s Addiction to Electronic Games, a mental, physical health risk

By Sheikha Suhaila Al-Sabah
Managing Editor

Electronic games are one of the most prominent aspects of the modern technological revolution that has swept our daily lives and become an integral part of our contemporary culture. Despite the entertainment and educational benefits that electronic games bring, addiction to them, especially among children, has become a major threat to their mental and physical health, and affects their social and behavioral development.

Recent studies indicate that an increasing percentage of children spend long hours in front of screens, immersed in virtual worlds that capture their attention and separate them from reality.

Here we look at some of the dimensions of this problem and the solutions that can be adopted to confront it.

Addiction to electronic games leads to the child’s isolation from his social environment, as children spend long hours in front of screens, which limits their interaction with family and friends. This addiction also causes psychological disorders such as anxiety and depression as a result of the pressure caused by trying to achieve accomplishments within the game, in addition to frustration when failing.

On the health front, excessive gaming can lead to problems such as poor eyesight, neck and back pain due to sitting incorrectly for long hours, and the lack of movement resulting from prolonged sitting increases the risk of obesity, a growing problem among children who prefer video games to physical activities.

On the educational front, research has shown that video game addiction negatively affects academic achievement, as children lose the ability to concentrate on their studies due to spending most of their time playing, which leads to a decline in their academic performance.

Electronic games are designed based on factors that encourage addiction, such as providing virtual rewards, launching new challenges, and direct interaction with other players. These factors make it difficult for children to stop playing, which deepens the problem if parental control and appropriate guidance are absent.

Therefore, the family plays an essential role in confronting this phenomenon by setting play times, encouraging alternative activities such as sports and reading, and monitoring the type of games that children play to ensure that they are free of harmful content. Building a dialogue relationship with the child to understand his needs and provide psychological support plays a pivotal role in reducing the negative impact of these games.

On the other hand, educational institutions are responsible for raising awareness of the dangers of addiction to electronic games, by organizing awareness activities and integrating entertainment and educational activities that rely on technology in a balanced and safe manner.

We hope that the concerned authority will intensify policies that limit the impact of electronic games, such as imposing time limits on online games, and promoting educational programs that use technology in innovative ways to motivate children to learn and interact socially.

From this standpoint, addressing this phenomenon requires strengthening family supervision to limit its negative effects. While technology offers enormous potential for developing children’s skills and education, conscious and balanced use remains the key to building a generation capable of benefiting from these tools in a way that serves its development and enhances its psychological and physical safety.