Stumble into Bryan Hall during the day, and you'll most likely find a pair of roommates with mouses in their hands, clicking away at their computers.
History freshman Quinn Guernsey and his roommate, human biology freshman Chris Hewitt, shrug their shoulders when they say they spend five or six hours a day on the Internet, convinced they're normal. Friends down the hall spend just as much time, if not more, Instant Messaging and playing computer games.
It's part of a growing trend of young people who were raised on the Internet, spending more and more time surfing the Web.
According to a National Health College Assessment study, the biggest change in health-related issues from 2000 to 2002 was the Internet - 13 percent of MSU students say the Internet has negatively affected their grades, and more than 41 percent say they use the Internet extensively. That same 13 percent of students who say being online affects their academics also points to a lack of sleep, four hours or less per night, from Internet usage.
"This new generation was raised with computers," Olin Health Center health advocate Dennis Martell said. "You think there's concern now, wait until the kids in K-12 now come to college."
But time spent surfing the Web isn't only cutting into the academic realm, he said. It's affecting students' physical health, social lives and emotional relationships.
"It's the age of information sharing," he said. "We've just gotten too far to the technological side - cell phones, computers, television. There needs to be more face-to-face interaction."
Guernsey and Hewitt said they'll always turn down the Internet to play sports or hang out with friends, but Guernesey said he often does homework while messaging and surfing the Web.
"I'll have 10 boxes up on my screen at once," he said. "And you can do other things while you're on the Internet."
But Hewitt said he needs to shut down his Internet connection in order to concentrate.
"That's crazy," Hewitt said, shaking his head at his roommate's comments. "I've got to get offline to do my homework."
The study showed students spend so much time on the Internet that it becomes a dependency, like cigarettes, alcohol or gambling. Surfing the Web becomes a substitute for real-life interaction with people, playing sports, extra-curricular activities or even dating.
"It's almost like sensory deprivation with the body," Martell said.
And it's not just an issue at MSU. The study revealed that students all over the country show signs of Internet dependency. For some, it's a matter of expense. To keep in touch with family and high school friends, the Internet tends to be cheaper than long-distance phone bills.
The data shows Internet addiction is hitting men at twice the rate it's hitting women - nearly 19 percent of men and 7.5 percent of women report signs of Internet dependency. According to the study, college men spend hours playing interactive video games and surfing other sites, including pornography, on the Web.
"There's a lot to attract men," Martell said.
Martell compared Internet addictions to popular entertainment of the past, when people would spend hours in front of the TV or the radio.
"In the '50s, '60s and '70s, it was television," he said. "Now, it's computer screens."
Olin health advocate Jon Kermiet, who has been analyzing the data, said time on the Internet will hit people with addictive personalities harder than others, just as with any other form of dependency.
"Some people are just more prone to this sort of thing than others," he said.
Kermiet said it's hard to know what the long-term effects of students being hooked on the Internet will be. More research will have to be conducted; more questions are planned for students in the spring study of the health assessment test.
"There are some real risks involved," he said. "But we don't know enough yet.
"We're going to see how, across the country, people are starting to realize that we have a problem. Until we're able to recognize it as a problem, we're not going to be able to start thinking about solutions or cures."
Until then, Olin advocates a plan to pass out fliers to students outlining the symptoms of Internet addiction and showing them the statistics related to computer usage.
"This is just an awareness tool," Kermiet said. "We're at least saying, 'Take a look at yourself.'"
The Olin health educators also are advocating to parents at the Parent Orientation Program in the summer to start monitoring their children's time online.
"Parents need to start setting parameters at a young age," he said.
What Kermiet doesn't want is for students to think this is some sort of initiative to do away with the Web altogether.
"The Internet has a lot of benefits," he said. "But any time you are unbalanced in your life, it's unhealthy. Don't give up your laptop, but don't give up your reality, either."
Tara May can be reached at maytara@msu.edu.
