The World Health Organization has finally included “gaming disorder” as a mental health condition, five months after announcing the fact back in January 2018. [Thanks, TIME!]
The WHO’s reasoning is that classifying the disorder will help governments, families, and health care workers be vigilant and identify the risks easier. Dr. Shekhar Saxena, director of the mental health and substance abuse department in the WHO, said that they accepted the proposal based on scientific evidence, as well as the need and demand for treatment in many parts of the world.
However, the WHO also has noted that actual cases of the disorder are still quite rare, with only 3% or less of the gaming population actually affected. Several other medical societies raised concern that the new classification may lead to many false alarm cases caused by undue worry from parents.
