Chennai Doctors Sound Alarm on Escalating Online Gaming and Betting Addiction
In a concerning trend emerging from Chennai, medical professionals are reporting a sharp rise in behavioral addictions linked to online gaming and betting platforms. These cases, documented at de-addiction centers across the city, are running parallel to traditional substance abuse issues, creating a dual public health challenge.
A Teenager's Descent into Digital Addiction
The story of Ashutosh*, a 13-year-old boy, illustrates this growing crisis vividly. His academic performance began to plummet, he withdrew from family interactions, and developed a habit of staying awake late into the night, concealed under a blanket with his phone. "I initially thought he was feeling cold," his mother recounted during a session at the de-addiction centre at Government Stanley Hospital. "It was only later that we discovered the truth—he was engrossed in betting through online applications. Within a mere three weeks, we suffered a devastating loss of ₹3 lakh. He had managed to gain access to my bank account details and passwords."
Demographic Spread and Devastating Consequences
Doctors in Chennai observe that patients grappling with these behavioral addictions span a wide age range, from adolescents as young as 13 to adults in their mid-30s, with a predominance of male cases. The manifestations vary significantly:
- Young Students: Many are school or college students who are failing academically due to excessive gaming, neglecting their studies and responsibilities.
- Older Adults: Others are older men who have resorted to extreme measures, such as pledging family homes or exhausting lifelong savings in desperate betting attempts, thereby plunging their families into severe financial and psychological turmoil.
Diagnostic Challenges and Clinical Insights
"Addiction to online gaming or betting presents unique diagnostic difficulties because these platforms are universally accessible," explains Dr. V. Sabitha, Head of the Department of Psychiatry at Stanley Medical College. "The key factor distinguishing a clinical addiction from a temporary obsession is the presence of sustained dysfunction. This includes refusal to attend work or school, persistent irritability, withdrawal from social relationships, and an inability to perform basic daily tasks for over a month." Diagnosis typically commences with structured questionnaires followed by a comprehensive clinical assessment.
Psychologist Debora Myrtle Anish from the hospital notes that individuals susceptible to behavioral addiction often seek immediate gratification or are coping with prolonged social isolation or financial pressures. "Games provide points, betting offers monetary rewards. Both activate the brain's reward system. Interestingly, many such patients also engage in high-risk intraday stock trading, which further amplifies risk-taking tendencies," she states, adding that a significant number have also fallen victim to various cyber fraud schemes.
Global Recognition and Local Cybercrime Links
The gravity of this issue gained formal international acknowledgment when the World Health Organization (WHO) classified gaming disorder as a mental health condition in the 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), which became effective in 2022. Locally, the problem intersects with cybercrime; in 2025, the Tamil Nadu Police Cyber Crime Wing registered approximately 12,500 cases, a substantial portion of which were connected to investment scams and fraudulent online trading platforms.
The Neurobiological Underpinnings of Addiction
Dr. Mithun Prasad, a psychiatrist at SIMS Hospital in Vadapalani, emphasizes that addiction is not merely a product of external circumstances. "There is robust biological evidence supporting all forms of addiction. Both behavioral and substance addictions stimulate the same mesolimbic dopamine pathway—the brain's primary reward circuit—even though we categorize them differently in clinical practice," he elucidates.
He further points out that physical symptoms over time can often unveil hidden addictions. "Excessive gamers frequently report chronic neck pain. In other behavioral addictions, patients might initially present with issues like marital breakdowns or anxiety disorders. The underlying addiction sometimes surfaces only during detailed evaluation. Consequently, case numbers are significantly underreported, yet such addictions serve as the root trigger for nearly 50% of the patients we treat."
Therapeutic Interventions and Future Diagnostic Tools
When addiction begins to fracture family dynamics, Stanley Hospital conducts group therapy sessions every Friday, which include interactions with individuals who have successfully recovered, as highlighted by Anish. While global research on diagnosing behavioral addiction continues to evolve, clinicians are exploring advanced tools. "Quantitative EEG or encephalogram (qEEG) holds promise," says Dr. Prasad. "It analyzes brainwave patterns and can visually illustrate addiction-related alterations in the brain. This technology can be particularly valuable for patients who are in denial about their condition."
(*Name changed to protect identity)
