Can Children Get Exercise Through Video Games? (“Exergaming”?)

Laura Julstorm, Hana Rahman National Center for Health Research Active video games have become popular amongst children ages 6-17. Active games, or exergames, simulate real life physical activities like dancing, bowling, swimming, etc.,requiring players to move around. Exergames market themselves as a way to get off the couch, get active, and stay healthy. Active games […]

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Laura Julstorm, Hana Rahman National Center for Health Research

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Active video games have become popular amongst children ages 6-17. Active games, or exergames, simulate real life physical activities like dancing, bowling, swimming, etc.,requiring players to move around. Exergames market themselves as a way to get off the couch, get active, and stay healthy. Active games could provide a good alternative to traditional physical activity, especially in neighborhoods with limited safe play areas. However, research suggests that giving children access to these games alone might not actually benefit their health.

Video Games and Physical Activity

 

The greatest strengths of exergaming are that it increases motivation to engage in physical activity and it reaches children who otherwise would not achieve the recommended amount of physical activity through traditional methods. ^[1] A review of the use of exergames as a supplement to physical education curriculum found several studies between 2007-2015 that support their use in combination with more traditional forms of physical activity. Five of the studies found that students’ were more interested in physical activity in groups that were playing exergames than in groups engaging in traditional forms of exercise.^[2] For example, students were more likely to actively participate in Dance Dance Revolution than performing dance movements alone. ^[2]

Researchers highlight that the greatest weakness of current exergames are their inability to keep the interest of players over longer time periods, despite being able to motivate players more quickly than traditional methods. ^[1]

A study by Tom Baranowski, a psychologist at Baylor College of Medicine, and his research team, published in the medical journal Pediatrics, found that putting an active game system in your home, probably will not increase the overall physical activity of your children. This study’s participants were boys and girls between the ages of 9 and 12. Every child was given a Wii video game system to play with at home. Half of the students were asked to choose two out of five active games offered them, and half were asked to choose two out of five traditional video games, played while sitting down.  The children played as often or as little as they wanted to with no guidance from parents or researchers on how or when to play the games, or for how long. The amount of time spent playing video games was recorded by the hardware and in self-report diaries kept by the children’s families. After 12 weeks of logging this information and recording the children’s physical activity though motion detecting devices (accelerometers) worn throughout the day, the researchers found that there was no difference in activity level between the children who had the active games and the children who had the inactive games. This suggests that simply owning an “exergame” system is not enough to keep your family active.  Although gamers can get a high level of physical activity out of active games, these children did not, despite having the games and accessories.

The researchers offered two possible explanations: either the children played the games at a low difficulty level or played at a high level and then opted out of additional activity for the rest of the day. The children who were given active games only engaged in an average of 25-28 minutes of moderate to high level physical activity per day, which was about the same amount of time per day as the children who were given inactive video games.^[3]

Exergaming is a relatively new field of research and it would be important to know how useful they are to promote motor skills, cognitive performance, and mental health.Meanwhile, researchers suggest that exergames are should be used as a supplement to more traditional forms of physical activity, rather than a replacement.^[2] 

How Much Exercise Should Children Get Each Day?

 

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that children adolescents (6-17) should get at least one hour of moderate to vigorous exercise every day. Physical activity should be aerobic –the kind that gets your heart pumping and increases oxygen consumption. The CDC also recommends age-appropriate muscle-strengthening activities like climbing on a jungle gym and bone-strengthening activities like running and jumping. Children may also strengthen their muscles and bones by playing basketball, jumping rope, and even playing hopscotch. Any physical activity where the body makes repeated contact with the ground can be good for growing children and adolescents.^[4]

Tips to Keep Your Kids Active

 

Relying solely on active games may not be particularly beneficial to your child’s health, but don’t pack up the game system just yet. The use of active games in tandem with different forms of physical activity can be useful for physical and internal development. Active games can also serve as a rainy day activity.^[5]

When buying games for your family, remember that just because a game is advertised for children, doesn’t mean a child will enjoy playing it. Some games may recreate workouts that require players to do calisthenics using workout accessories like resistance bands. Although this is “suitable” for children, it may not appeal to them. On the other hand, some games require players to recreate movements used in boxing and dancing. These games are fun for most kids, and in laboratory settings, playing them at a high level can increase activity at least as much as other moderate physical activities, such as a brisk walk.

Here are other ways you can help your child stay active:

• Introduce your child to a variety of age-appropriate and fun physical activities.^[6]
• Encourage your children’s interest in playing sports.
• Limit the time your children and your family spend in front of a TV or computer screen and encourage them to jump rope or exercise while watching (or at least during commercials).
• If you and your family enjoy “exergaming,” increase the difficulty level on your favorite games so that you can really get moving.

Visit the CDC website for more information on how to keep your child healthy and active!

All articles on our website have been approved by Dr. Diana Zuckerman and other senior staff. 

1. Benzing, V., & Schmidt, M. (2018). Exergaming for Children and Adolescents: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 7(11), 422. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm7110422
2. Vaghetti, C. A. O., Monteiro-Junior, R. S., Finco, M. D., Reategui, E., & Silva Da Costa Botelho, S. (2018). Exergames Experience in Physical Education: A Review. Physical Culture and Sport. Studies and Research, 78(1), 23–32. https://doi.org/10.2478/pcssr-2018-0010
3. Baranowski T, Baranowski J, O’Connor TM, Abdelsamad D, et al. Impact of an Active Video Game on Healthy Children’s Physical Activity. Pediatrics. 2012; 129(3):636-642.
4. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. Youth Physical Activity Guidelines Toolkit. US Department of Health and Human Services. Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans: Chapter 3: Active Children and Adolescents. http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/physicalactivity/guidelines.htm Accessed March 14, 2012.
5. LeBlanc, A. G., Chaput, J.-P., McFarlane, A., Colley, R. C., Thivel, D., Biddle, S. J. H., Maddison, R., Leatherdale, S. T., & Tremblay, M. S. (2013). Active Video Games and Health Indicators in Children and Youth: A Systematic Review. PLoS ONE, 8(6), e65351. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0065351
6. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. Physical Activity for Everyone: Making Physical Activity Part of a Child’s Life. http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/everyone/getactive/children.html Accessed March 14, 2012.

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