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KIDNAPPED BY TECHNOLOGY - Part Two
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... by Dr. Joe Dispenza
 The latest research has proven that a healthy diet decreases violence and aggression while improving brain activity. It also has been observed that the long-term use of video games alters the way the normal brain functions. When a child plays a computer game, each time they blow something or someone to bits, shoot down or destroy a plane, ship, UFO or any vehicle, break through a wall or barrier in order to move to the next level, or beat a character to severe injury, the brain responds chemically. In fact, it is proven that the pleasure center begins to release high amounts of dopamine, the brain's natural pleasure chemical.
A Side-Effect Of This Mechanism Is Addiction
The bottom line is that dopamine makes us feel good, especially when we're winning at such a high pace. In addition, when accomplishment is coupled with excitement, the brain produces the adrenalines norepinephrine and epinephrine in order to wake itself up with a boost of heightened awareness. This chemical cocktail is the perfect mix for problems in normal brain function.
To reiterate, this type of computer game stimulation is not so bad for a short run, but begins to cause problems in the long term. As the brain's reward center is repeatedly activated and the strong chemicals are released during the gaming, pleasure zones become overstimulated. As a result, the reward system becomes desensitized and then recalibrates itself to a higher threshold. In other words, it will need more of a chemical rush to produce the same feelings. A side-effect of this mechanism is addiction … and when it is tied to attention and learning, serious effects manifest.
Therefore, The Next Time A Youth Engages In The Game, It's A Guarantee They Will Need More Of A Thrill To Excite Their Brain.
As the brain's physiology responds to a mind exposed to these abnormal virtual activities (no child blows up people or things in real life), the brain is fooled into thinking it is almost real. Additionally, the continuous release of chemicals on the nerve cells' receptor sites (the cells' docking points for chemical information) finally causes the receptors to become desensitized to the same level of the chemical rush. Therefore, the next time a youth engages in the game, it's a guarantee they will need more of a thrill to excite their brain. It's like living with a spouse who always yells at you - eventually they need to yell a little louder to get your attention, because over time that intense stimulation is considered normal.
Receptor sites are the same way. If you keep over-activating them, they become numb and require more and more substantial hits. The side-effect: the brain needs unrealistic highs to feel happy and satiated. In the absence of such high-level stimulation, the mind turns off, and your offspring do too.
So when your kid's computer activity ends, count on your child looking like a drone because you're probably not all that interesting compared to what he's just been experiencing. In truth, everything in life will seem boring. Simple things like watching a sunset, playing with the dog or even visiting with a grandparent will seem like trivial nonsense. Why? Because nothing in the normal, mundane world can match the ecstasy of the virtual world or the super high it produces. Sounds like an addiction. And without proper restraint, future choices may be married to things that produce more heightened stimulation: drugs, pornography, gambling, excess shopping, over-eating … all because the brain's satiation center may never be fulfilled.
The Gamer In The Classroom
Let's take this scenario one step further. What about when a child, between Gameboy mania and a MySpace chat room, goes to school to develop his mind? Shouldn't learning be a reward in itself? Attention spans inevitably will shorten for the gamer who sits in the classroom trying to pay attention to a topic that doesn't turn his brain on or make his body feel alive. As the young brain goes through withdrawal in the classroom, the perfect stimulation might be to cause trouble by acting out.
Getting in trouble causes high adrenal activity and, unconsciously, the child is making the brain turn on again to provoke similar chemical releases as gaming provides. Fidgeting, falling asleep, interruptions, emotional outbursts, provocative and disrespectful comments are all side-effects of attention problems. It isn't too difficult to reason the etiology in a child with no genetic history of ADD and ADHD, no head injury and no exposure to toxicity.
How do we make necessary changes in the best interest of the young developing mind? It is the parent's job to think this complexity through to its end. If we propagate the use of technology without an emphasis on developing personal values, providing an environment for skillful learning, practicing reverence for all cultures and beliefs, performing daily rituals, participating in family and social activities, exposing our kids to nature, motivating them to exercise, debating philosophy or providing an environment for interpersonal evolution, we can surely predict how well - or how poorly - future generations will thrive on a planet with so much opportunity.
© 2009, Joe Dispenza, D.C.
Listen to Dr. Joe's Beyond the Ordinary KRSE Archived Radio Programs
Dr. Joe Dispenza One of the scientists, researchers, and teachers featured in the award winning film, “What the BLEEP Do We Know!?” His book, Evolve Your Brain: The Science of Changing Your Mind connects the subjects of thought and consciousness with the brain, the mind, and the body. The book explores “the biology of change.” That is, when we truly change our mind, there is a physical evidence of change in the brain.
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