Caught in the Net? People who are obsessed with the Internet are more likely to become depressed, according to a new study in the U.K.
Instead of having real-life friends, most of their social interaction occurs through online chat rooms and social networking sites.
People can become addicted to gaming and browsing sexually gratifying websites.
How to tell if you have an Internet addiction? Like any other addiction, such as alcohol, the behaviour is a problem when it interferes with everyday life.
“While many of us use the Internet to pay bills, shop and send emails, there is a small subset of the population who find it hard to control how much time they spend online, to the point where it interferes with their daily activities,” says Dr. Catriona Morrison from the University of Leeds.
People with Internet addictions had higher rates of depression — and sometimes severe depression — than non-addicted people.
The study surveyed 1,319 people from age 16 to 51, and found 1.2% were Internet addicted. Addiction was more common in young people. Nowadays, addiction treatment centres often have experts in Internet addiction.
