Not worse than jogging

Video games were credited with the same benefit as jogging

Olga Ivanova, Naked Science

A sedentary lifestyle in front of the screen is called the cause of many troubles: from obesity to vision impairment, high blood pressure and even the development of diabetes. Scientists from the Federal University of Vale do San Francisco (Brazil) and the University of Bath (UK) conducted their study, the results of which were published in Games for Health Journal (de Brito Gomes et al., Cardiovascular and Enjoyment Comparisons after Active Videogame and Running in Type 1 Diabetes Patients: A Randomized Crossover Trial).

The work involved patients with type I diabetes of both sexes who regularly injected themselves with insulin. By automatic random selection, some people were assigned to run on a treadmill with moderate intensity for 30 minutes for a certain number of days, and the second group played active video games with 3D glasses.

Before and after the exercises and video game sessions, various physiological parameters were measured in the participants: blood pressure, pulse, blood glucose levels, and others. It turned out that video games give very similar physiological effects to exercises on a treadmill. At the same time, glucose levels dropped both in those who were running and in those who were playing.

The main difference that the scientists noted was that the subjects found video games more motivating and enjoyable than running. And scoring points and excitement helped the participants to repeat the game sessions over time and improve their results. It is unclear, however, whether such games, along with physical benefits, can cause psychological dependence in people. However, as a substitute for running, at least sometimes such activity is probably useful.

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