Pathological Gamers

Excess gaming can wreak havoc on in a kid’s life. So how much is too much?

Some kids are at EXTRA risk of becoming pathological gamers. Those who are socially awkward are more prone to addiction – and escaping to that gaming world can cause big problems with sleep, school, depression and social life. So how much is too much? The American Academy of Pediatrics says elementary school age children should really limit their screen time to 1 hour per day – while high school kids should max out at around two hours.

Researchers determined which kids were pathological gamers by asking them if they lied about the amount of time spent playing, if their schoolwork suffered, and if playing helped them escape from problems or bad feelings.