As of 2010, at least 79 percent of English-speaking, adult Americans used the Internet, according to the Pew Research Center. The prevalence and availability of online media, social networking, news sources and gaming online makes it a virtually perfect entertainment machine. You have everything at your finger tips, and the next website is just a mouse-click away. If you find yourself spending increasing amounts of time online and less time with family and friends, you could be suffering from the harmful effects of Internet addiction.
Detachment and Task Failure
Using the Internet to an addictive degree can begin to interfere with how you accomplish other tasks, notes HelpGuide.org. You may find yourself behind in your duties at work because you've spent too much time surfing the web. At home, some of your usual chores may go undone while you use the Internet. Your house may become messy and your children neglected if the Internet becomes your primary activity of the day.
Isolation
The Internet can isolate you from your family and friends. You may begin to believe that some of your online relationships through dating sites, chat rooms and message boards are more important than the relationships you have outside of the World Wide Web. The Milwaukee School of Engineering classifies this behavior as a cyber-relational addiction. Slowly, your relationships online become the primary relationships in your life.
Guilt
As you sit down to your computer each day, you may have the distinct feeling of guilt. You know what you shouldn't be using the Internet so frequently, or using it for the purpose that you most often use it for. You may try to hide your Internet use from your family because you feel so guilty, so you use it late at night or while at work.
Poor Diet
A surprising effect of Internet addiction was studied by a variety of universities, with the results published in a 2010 issue of Nutrition Research and Practice. The study found that those who were addicted to the Internet had a poorer diet, including skipping meals, frequent snacking and unhealthy food choices. If you find yourself taking most of your meals at the computer, or skipping them while using the Internet, it could be the indication of an Internet addiction.
Withdrawal
When an individual is addicted to drugs and the drugs are taken away, that individual will experience withdrawal as his body adapts to living without drugs. The same is true with the Internet and Internet addiction. You may feel withdrawal symptoms when you aren't able to use the computer, including feeling agitated, quick to anger or desperation, notes the National Post. You feel a hole in your life when you can't get to the Internet, and count down the hours until you can get online again.
References
- Pew Internet: Internet, Broadband and Cell Phone Statistics
- HelpGuide.org: Internet Addiction
- Milwaukee School of Engineering: Internet Addiction
- Nutrition Research and Practice: The Effects of Internet Addiction on the Lifestyle and Diet of Korean Adolescents
- National Post: Without Internet Connections, Students Suffer Withdrawal and Anxiety
