Playing videogames for two hours is the same as doing a line of cocaine, according to experts speaking to the Lancashire Evening Post.

The UK paper says three out of five under 16-year-olds, and four out if five under 10-year olds play games at levels that show signs of addiction and an increasing number of youngsters are seeking professional help. Not Prima guides, they mean doctors.

Counsellor and therapist Steve Pope told the paper: "Spending two hours on a game station is equivalent to taking a line of cocaine in the high it produces."

He added: "It is the fastest growing addiction in the country and this is affecting young people mentally, as well as leading to physical problems such as obesity."

This bit's hilarious: "I saw one 14-year-old Preston boy who played on games for 24 hours non stop and had not eaten and was showing signs of dehydration.

"When his parents tried to take his console away, he became aggressive and threatened to jump out of a window." There's a simple answer to that one - let them do it. A concrete faceplant will soon teach them there's no 'press A to respawn' in real life.

Of course, he plays the violence card: "Computer game addiction can also spiral into violence as after playing violent games, they may turn their fantasy games into reality."

Does anyone stop to think that maybe it's the case that a growing number of parents simply lack the knowledge and ability to properly raise and control their offspring?

Counsellor and therapist Steve Pope told the paper: "Spending two hours on a game station is equivalent to taking a line of cocaine in the high it produces."

"A concrete faceplant will soon teach them there's no 'press A to respawn' in real life."
Rofl

"A concrete faceplant will soon teach them there's no 'press A to respawn' in real life."
Rofl

What the hell is this guy talking about. 2 hours on an Xbox is like a line of cocaine as much as my arse is like J-Lo

Pfft! Until gaming gives you heart attacks or strokes, they're not the same!!!

I am not going to worry until gaming does this.

Well maybe a septum-less man is more likely.

Playing video games for two hours is the same as doing a line of cocaine. That was the widely publicised claim of counsellor and therapist Steve Pope - who has now revealed he discarded statistics before making the statement.

When requested to back up his claim with supporting facts or statistics, Pope said: "I don't rely on reports," explaining that he thought of statistics as "lies, lies and more lies".

Instead, Pope says his statement was based on his experiences as a doctor: "It's about who walks through my door," he said.

According to Rock Paper Shotgun, who dissected the entire LEP report, Pope said he did have stats to suggest that gaming addiction is the fastest growing addiction in the UK, but has since failed to produce any.

He did, however, later draw parallels between the highs of gambling and drug use, and links gaming highs in the same way. "The human being can be, in my professional opinion, addicted to anything it finds pleasurable. There are links between the highs of gambling, and game stations which cause a similar pattern of behaviours in the brain as does class A stimulant drugs. There is a weight of evidence to support this," said Pope.

"The test for me with any addictive process is are your actions having negative consequences. I see first hand the consequences of overuse of game stations usually with the sufferer using the game to escape the reality of life. And to the addictive personality this is dangerous. ... The physical consequences are also horrific for the child of today which can lead to ill health through obesity etc," he adds.