Conceptualizing Digital Addiction as Glutamine Inhibition and Glutamate Acceleration (GIGA)

Abstract

This chapter carries out two investigations into digital addiction using the brain productivity measure of knol. It is asserted that digital addiction is caused by two medical conditions linked to the well-known concept of flow and lesser known concept of involvement. These conditions are serotonergic-dopaminergic asynchronicity (SDA) and glutamine inhibition and glutamate acceleration (GIGA). In online environments SDA affects befriending, defriending and kudos and GIGA affects workfulness and smart-device overuse to produce increased wakefulness, causing conditions like Circadian rhythm sleep disorder. In other words, if a person is over-stimulated or under-stimulated, their use of digital technologies, such as at night, will increase. The results show improved sleep and reduced device use during the night when the L-Glutamine is consumed, but effects the following day were not always positive. L-5-Hydroxytryptophan had some effect in reducing ‘mental gaze' caused by glutamate and dopamine, but could not be seen as effective as an SSRI.