AIIMS has twice the number of victims of Internet addiction in two years

Since the launch of the facility two years ago the clinic saw twice the number of patients visiting it this year. According to experts at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), the number of cases is higher among youth, mostly school and college students.

This year AIIMS Behavioural Addiction Clinic has witnessed a sharp rise in a number of patients with complaints of "internet addiction". Since the launch of the facility two years ago the clinic saw twice the number of patients visiting it this year. According to experts at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), the number of cases is higher among youth, mostly school and college students.

According to the PTI report, experts attributed the development of "severe behavioural and psychiatric problems" to internet addiction.

A person stops carrying out his or her routine activities because an internet addiction is an uncontrolled use of the internet for gaming, gambling or pornography to the extent. And depression is emerging as the major cause of mental illness.

The recently-concluded National Mental Health Survey of India had estimated the prevalence of mental disorders in the age group of 18-29 years at 7.39 per cent (excluding tobacco use disorder) and lifetime prevalence at 9.54 per cent. About half of all mental illnesses are known to begin by the age of 14 and three-quarters by mid-20s.

The experts reportedly said that many of the issues of problematic internet use are due to a lack of parental monitoring and inconsistencies in the discipline. Therefore, parents should supervise the activities of the adolescents and also introduce other pleasurable activities.

Rachna Bhargava, a clinical psychologist at AIIMS, reportedly said that the parents should also encourage their children to increase social interaction in the real world rather than spending time in the virtual world. She also said that the number of people visiting the AIIMS Behavioural Addiction Clinic with complaints of internet addiction has doubled since the last two years.

She also said that adolescents do not accept that they have an internet addiction and require several psycho-educative sessions. They are motivated to take treatment through various techniques.

Pratap Saran, Professor of Psychiatry at AIIMS, explained that internet addiction is often associated with "depression, mood disorders, anxiety and substance abuse", but the causality can be bidirectional which means spending too much time on the internet may lead to poor academic performance, and this, in turn, may lead to depression or mood disorders.

Similarly, those suffering from depression may find spending time on the internet as an alternate source of engagement.

As per as Saran, an awareness needs to be generated among the youth and their parents about internet addiction and educate them about the use of the internet in a responsible manner.

Professor R K Chadda, HOD of the Department of Psychiatry and National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre (NDDTC) chief, said 20 to 25 per cent of youth in India suffer from some kind of mental disorder with depression, anxiety, mood disorders and substance abuse being prevalent among them.

Anju Dhawan, Professor, NDDTC highlighted substance use disorders among the youth. Not only is the use of Nicotine and alcohol rising in the country among young males and females, newer drugs like 3,4-Methylenedioxy methamphetamine (MDMA), amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS) and glue sniffing have now risen to alarming proportions.

The experts added that due to "changing economy, culture and migration" across the country, street children and those living in shelter homes are increasing in number. They form another important group of young people, who are especially vulnerable in the absence of family support and a stable home. They said that the group is frequently exposed to drug use, physical and sexual abuse, criminal behaviour and violence.