DVT victim's father 'Enjoy gaming, it's

The father of a young man who lost his life to Deep Vein Thrombosis has advised parents not to stop their children from playing video games - but warned that extended play sessions should be broken up. Chris Staniforth, 20, died in May after a DVT-related blood clot worked its way into his lungs. DVT-related clots are usually caused by extended periods of immobility. Chris's father believes that long, movement-free sessions spent both gaming and using social networks contributed to his son's death.Recounting the last night of Chris's life to BBC Look North, David Staniforth said: "He'd probably been on the computer on Facebook or gaming all night."David said that Chris drove to the Job Centre the following day. After parking, Chris told a friend that he'd suffered from a "pounding" in his chest - now believed to be a blood clot passing through his heart. He died shortly afterwards.Despite some scary tabloid reports of Chris' death appearing over the weekend ('Death By Xbox', said The Sun's front page), David commented that gaming was "great fun" - but recommended that parents monitor the number of hours their children spend in front of the PC or TV screen."Don't stop your child from playing the games," he said. "They love doing it. It's great fun. It's not to bug them about it or spoil their fun. But just be aware. Enjoy it, but take a break."David is now in the process of setting up a website with Chris's friends to warn people of the dangers of spending lengthy spells immobile."This is not normal in such a young person," he commented. "It's [usually] immobile people in hospital, and those that have been brought to hospital with DVTs after long-haul flights."