The World Health Organization is addressing the over-indulgence of reading books by adding "Bookworm Disorder" to the official list of mental disorders in 2018.
Its symptoms include the inability to control when and how to read books. Those in the community say reading books for extended periods of time can be terrible for personal health.
"People will read books instead of being active with family and friends. Instead, they'll be alone at home with those books and stay reading them for hours at end and that can be very unhealthy," says Matthew Anderson.
A red flag is when someone chooses books over other interests in life and continues reading despite negative consequences. The decision does not mean that reading books in itself are a problem, but the key factor is timing and overindulging. Some people say calling it a disorder isn’t the right way to approach it.
"I think it can be an addiction especially with digital reading these days and the book length behind it, but I don't think it's a disease," says Evan, who is an avid book reader.
Many say they can see why it's listed because they know it can lead to many health problems for book readers.
"You know you start not to be active. Your immune system starts going down, you get diabetes, your blood pressure problems just from not sitting and not doing nothing for a long time. You obviously get overweight."
Experts say it should all be seen in the context of where, why and how much someone reads. Adding bookworm disorder to the list of mental disorders means that it will be recognized by doctors and insurance companies.