Around 203 delegates from across the country came together to take part in the 13th Annual National Conference of Indian Association of Biological Psychiatry(ANCIABP) got underway Saturday. “The conference has been planned to deliver the most recent advancements in Biological Psychiatry by eminent psychiatrists from across the country,” said a statement.
During the conference, while Dr E Mohandas, Consultant Psychiatrist from Thrissur, Kerala, discussed how the structure and brain circuits are linked with normal and abnormal behaviours (which lead to development of illnesses), Dr Atul Ambekar, Professor of Psychiatry from NDDTC, AIIMS, New Delhi, informed about the problem of cannabis and how it leads to mental health problems.
Dr Avinash Desouza, an expert on Neurobiological effects of gadgets addiction, spoke about how gadgets can be addictive as alcohol. “Gadgets can be addictive. The effect of repeated usage of gadget is similar to consuming alcohol or any substance. The use of gadgets may affect the development of brain among children and may affect the social interactions and aggressive behaviour in adults especially when exposed to violent video games,” he said. “The use of gadgets causes changes in brain circuits that leads to the development of permanent changes affecting emotion and cognition.”
He said that the problem is an “emerging problem” and every week he gets 3-4 such cases in Mumbai. “Children who play video games for a long time show academic decline. The school environment does not interest them compared to the fast action paced environment of video games,” said Desouza. adding, “There is a need for the government to be vigilant about video games that are extremely violent and may compel children to attempt suicide and develop self-injurious behaviour.”
Source:-indianexpress
