Almost one in ten people who are regular video game players are suffering from symptoms of addiction, according to the research conducted by The Sydney Morning Herald, one of the leading newspapers in Australia.

The research team at Nepean Hospital in Sydney found that 8% of a sample of 2,000 gamers aged 14 and over showed evidence of having a problem. Young males were more prone to gaming addiction as compared to women, or middle-aged and married people.

Under a quarter of the 156 identified problem-gamers were facing financial problem due to excessive playing, but half of them had tried unsuccessfully to cut down. A further three quarters had sleeping problems and were unable to concentrate on their work or study.

By the extension of playing hours, signs of irritation can be seen when away from games for long, gain or loss of weight and cut down on sleep.