ALPINE, Utah (ABC 4 News) Nathan Haug is an Alpine teenager dedicated to helping other teens quit addictions to online pornography.
The 17-year-old is an eagle scout, athlete and a member of his high school's student council. Several years ago he got hooked on viewing porn on his family's home computer. Haug said he lied to his family about it for years and covered his tracks.
"Eventually it got to deleting that and deleting specific searches and cleaning up my messes afterward to the point where I timed it masterfully," Haug said, in an interview with an ABC Nightline correspondent.
The warning signs for teenagers who may become addicted online pornography include depression, poor school performance, self-isolation and lying.
Haug's mother said she noticed her son would lie about what he was doing on the computer and realized he had a bad habit.
Awareness about the addiction in teenagers is growing. A group called "Fight the New Drug" tours high schools across the country informing youth about the online obsession. Their message is to let teenagers know that liking pornography is not bad, but normal, which is why is it so intriguing. The group encourages teens to speak up and not be ashamed to seek help if they are hooked.
Haug was inspired by a church leader to seek help, in addition to several talks with his father. The teen is part of the "Fight the New Drug" campaign and helps other teens recover.
"I know there will be someone out there in my life, maybe I'll run into them, maybe I won't and they'll have this attitude," Haug said. "They'll maybe tease me if they want. But it's not up to me to care, because for all I know they're suffering from the same problem."
