Nowadays there are so many things and services, which make our life more comfortable. We cannot imagine neither work, nor leisure time without computers or mobile phones, if we don’t like our body we can correct it by plastic surgery, at least we don’t even need sun to get tanned!  But there is other side of this. More and more people are addicted to strangest things and lots of addictions developed together with technologies. I picked some addictions, which some time ago was listen as unusual or strange ones, but now i think it’s the addictions of nowadays.

(image credits: Mikey aka DaSkinnyBlackMan in Iraq)

Tanning addiction

Is a syndrome where an individual appears to have a physical and/or psychological addiction to sunbathing or the use of tanning beds. In 2005, a group of dermatologists published a study showing that frequent tanners experience a loss of control over their tanning schedule, displaying a pattern of addiction similar to smokers and alcoholics. Tanorexia is the term often used to describe a condition in which a person participates in excessive outdoor sun tanning or excessive use of other skin tanning methods (such as tanning beds) to achieve a darker skin complexion because they perceive themselves as unacceptably pale. The syndrome is different than tanning addiction, although both may fit into the same syndrome and can be considered a subset of tanning addiction. Serious cases of tanorexia can be considered dangerous because many of the more popular methods of tanning require prolonged exposure to UV radiation, which is known to be a cause of many negative side effects, including skin cancer.

Nasal Spray addiction

What happens is that your nose is stuffy and you can’t sleep. So you spray with the nose spray and open the nose beautifully. Now you can breathe and sleep. But later, the nose clogs again and you use the drops again, maybe more that the first time. At first you only use them every 12 hours. Then you use it more and more often. You know the bottle says only use for a few days, but the nose is really plugged unless you use the drops. Meanwhile you feel nervous and irritable. This is the “adrenergic” effect of the drops, whether you take them orally or by nasal spray. Although, some specialist say, that you cannot be addicted to it physically ant it is compulsive psychological need, but it doesn’t make it easier to overcome.

Music addiction

Some people find it not harmful, but it has negative aspects. First of all there are information on the Internet, that some people listen to their iPod even when watching TV, working and communicating with others. Such person cannot concentrate his attention and he is isolated from the surrounding world. In addition only few people probably realize that they are unintentionally damaging their hearing just by listening to an mp3 player or iPod through earphones at high volume for just an hour every day. A recent study by scientists looking at emerging health risks in Europe concluded that using earphones and playing loud music every day for five years could cause permanent and irreversible hearing problems.

Shopping addiction

Oniomania (from Greek onios = “for sale,” mania = insanity) is a medical term for the compulsive desire to shop. The addicted person gets into a vicious circle that consists of negative emotions like anger and stress, which lead to purchasing something. After the buying is over, the person is either regretful or depressed. In order to cope with the feelings, the addicted person resorts to another purchase. Shopaholism often begins at an early age. Children who experience parental neglect often grow up with low self-esteem because throughout much of their childhood they experienced that they were not important as a person. As a result, they used toys to compensate for their feelings of loneliness. Adults that have depended on materials for emotional support when they were much younger are more likely to become addicted to shopping because of the ongoing sentiment of deprivation they endured as children. During adulthood, the purchase instead of the toy is substituted for affection. Shopaholics are unable to deal with their everyday problems, especially those that alter their self-esteem. Most of the issues in their lives are repressed by buying something.

Teeth whitening addiction

According to a report, in the US alone, people spent almost $1.4 billion on tooth whitening products and procedures in 2006. Most people use these products repeatedly. Alarm bells are ringing that Americans are getting addicted to these products. The Academy of General Dentistry has been issuing regular warnings since 2002 about the dangers associated with whitening gels, strips and other teeth whitening products. Dangers associated with whitening gels : repeated use can lead to sensitive teeth, it can also inflame the gums and make the enamel brittle and rough, it can permanently discolor the teeth.

CrackBerry addiction

Blackberries are seeing a great deal of use, both by professional people and people who just love to stay connected, but people are slowly realizing that there’s a bit of a darker side to this admittedly useful device. The term “crackberry” came into existence to address the fact that people were getting more and more addicted to these attractive little gadgets. To make time for the gadgets, some users will “give up time with family,” Rutgers University School of Business Gayle Porter said. “They’ll give up getting together with friends. They’ll give up taking care of themselves, getting enough sleep .”

Cosmetic surgery addiction

I think almost everyone have heard a story about a Korean woman who injected cooking oil in her face, because she ran out of silicone her doctor gave to use at home. The scary thing is, plastic surgeons Stateside aren’t surprised with the obsession surrounding plastic surgery, as more are seeing an increased need for corrective procedures. On the other hand, plastic or cosmetic surgery is not necessarily a bad thing. For example, facial and body injuries may cause a deformity, which can only be corrected by means of plastic surgery. Additionally, cosmetic surgery can be a lifesaver in the case of extreme obesity. Unfortunately, two-thirds of plastic surgery patients are repeat patients and often they have unrealistic view of their bodies.

Mobile phone addiction

It is becoming major addiction, especially for teenagers and young people. Psychiatrists say mobile phone addiction is an obsessive-compulsive disorder which looks set to become one of the biggest non-drug addictions in the 21st century. Young addicts may spend so much time making calls, receiving messages and logging into the internet that they fail at school and drop out. Young addicts may spend so much time making calls, receiving messages and logging into the internet that they fail at school and drop out. Addicts run up huge bills and sometimes even turn to crime to pay them! Sounds miserably, but I think all of us get more or less nervous, when we realize we have left our phone at home.

Computer or Internet addiction

There are a lot of forms of this addiction. Some people who suffer from an addiction to chat rooms, or social networking sites become over-involved in online relationships or may engage in virtual adultery. Online friends quickly become more important to the individual often at the expense of real life relationships with family and friends. In many instances, this will lead to marital discord and family instability. Others have an addictions to online gaming, online gambling, and eBay are fast becoming new mental problems in the post-Internet Era. With the instant access to virtual casinos, interactive games, and eBay, addicts loose excessive amounts of money and even disrupt other job-related duties or significant relationships. In addition there are some more interesting forms of computer caused addictions: It’s GoogleStalking – when people are constantly snooping on their friends on Google, trying to know something, other interesting habit is an egosurfing,it is one who surfs the Internet for his own name, to see what, if any, articles appear about himself. One more category is called blogstreaking, and it means tendency to reveal too personal information on the Internet. Of course, not always addictions are so extreme, but let’s think – when we have nothing to do or feel bored, most of us will surf the Internet rather than reading a book or going to theatre..

Main sources http://www.addicted.com, http://health.msn.com, http://www.newscientist.com, http://allergyconsumerview.com, http://wikipedia.org

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