Sunday 13 March 2011

Two hours gaming = a line of cocaine...

Well, according to therapist Steve Pope.

From MCV:

Just one day after claims linking video games to sleeplessness emerged, Lancashire based therapist Steve Pope has made some of the most bewildering accusations yet about the possible harmful effects of gaming.



“Spending two hours on a game station is equivalent to taking a line of cocaine in the high it produces in the brain," Pope told BBC Radio 5Live in an interview last night. “It's the silent killer of our generation.


“We're now onto second generation game station players who have always grown up with it. Computer game addiction can also spiral into violence as after playing violent games, they may turn their fantasy games into reality.


"It is the fastest growing addiction in the country and this is affecting young people mentally and physically."

Describing his campaign against gaming as a "personal quest to spread the message", Pope urged any parents listening to the broadcast to "go upstairs to your kids bedroom and try and take the game station controller out of their hands".

He said most kids will react "in the same way as an alcoholic would if you tried to take their booze – it's scary".


Of the sleeplessness scandal, Pope claimed that kids who stay up late playing titles such as Call of Duty are unable to concentrate the next morning "because of the endorphin high in their brains" that leads to a "chemical imbalance" that disturbs behaviour and learning.


Scary stuff indeed! No, not really.

Before you few start battening down the doors and locking away your children from the evils of Mario know that Mr Pope not only made the same remarkable claims a year ago, (to the joy of the tabloids), but when challenged by journalist John Walker of PC website, Rock, Paper Shotgun, he was, surprise, surprise, unwilling or unable to provide any evidence to back up his claims. For the full repport hit the following link ( Deja Vu: Gaming like cocaine claims return ) and then ask yourself the question as to who's really the irresponsible ones here. The games industry, or the fame seeking therapist.

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