Home Business China International Culture��Edu Sci��Tech Sports Life Travel P
hotos
��Search
China Observer
�� China's population and development face five challenges
�� 2nd-generation successors maintain prosperity of private firms
�� Report on economic life by gender
Photos
�� Argentina wins World Youth Championship
�� Committee set up to trace lost Peking Man skulls
�� Miao drum art
Find Suppliers Trade Leads Company Directories Product Directories China
Products China Suppliers Hot Products Hot Buys New Products Search by
Country Trade Shows
��Home>>Life
Beijing clinic treats online addicts
www.chinanews.cn 2005-07-04 10:07:14
(Source: Agencies)
Three thousand primary school and middle school students took part in the
activity aiming for healthy internet culture on June 21, 2005 in
Xinjiang. (File Photo)
BEIJING, July 4 - The 12 teenagers and young adults, some in ripped jeans
and baggy T-shirts, sit in a circle, chewing gum and fidgeting as they
shyly introduce themselves. "I'm 12 years old," one boy announces with a
smile. "I love playing computer games. That's it." "It's been good to
sleep" says another, a 17-year-old with spiky hair, now that he's no
longer on the computer all day.
The youths are patients at China's first officially licensed clinic for
Internet addiction, a downside of the online frenzy that has accompanied
the nation's breathtaking economic boom.
"All the children here have left school because they are playing games or
in chat rooms everyday," says the clinic's director, Dr. Tao Ran. "They
are suffering from depression, nervousness, fear and unwillingness to
interact with others, panic and agitation. They also have sleep
disorders, the shakes and numbness in their hands."
According to government figures, China has the world's second-largest
online population��94 million��after the United States.
While China promotes Internet use for business and education, government
officials also say Internet cafes are eroding public morality. Many
illegally operated Internet cafes were shut down and fined huge fees for
their operators.
Tao's government-owned clinic, which began taking patients in March,
occupies the top floor of a two-story building on a quiet, tree-lined
street on the campus of the Beijing Military Region Central Hospital in
the heart of the Chinese capital.
A dozen nurses and 11 doctors care for the patients, mostly youths aged
14 to 24 who have lost sleep, weight and friends after countless hours in
front of the computer, often playing video games with others online.
Some come voluntarily, while others are checked in by their parents. Many
say their online obsessions helped them escape day-to-day stress,
especially pressure from parents to excel in school.
Some can't stop playing games, while the older ones tend to be addicted
to online chats with the opposite sex, Tao says. Others are fixated on
designing violent games.
Tao, a psychiatrist for 20 years who specializes in treating addiction,
estimates that up to 2.5 million Chinese suffer from Internet addiction,
though others are skeptical.
Tao says the long-term effects of treatment are generally successful, but
it's not easy to keep patients from again giving themselves over to
Internet temptation.
"It would be hard to give it up completely," said the 20-year-old from
Beijing. "I'll take it step-by-step."
E-mail: zhangqinghua@chinanews.com.cn Tel: 8610-88387443 Fax:
8610-68327649
Copyright� 2004 Chinanews.com. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
Disclaimer: viewpoints in the website do not represent China News Service
Learn Chinese online, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet
