Some video games help manage diabetes as well as running, claim Bath researchers
Experts from the University of Bath say so called "exergames" can help treat the disease
A group of researchers from the University of Bath say playing certain video games can be just as beneficial for your health as going for a run.
The team from CAMERA - or the Centre for Analysis of Motion, Entertainment Research and Applications - say playing so called exergames where the gamer uses movement could help type one diabetics stay active in a fun way.
Their research flies in the face of traditionally held beliefs, that screen time spent playing video games can lead to obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes.
Researchers from Brazil and the UK ran a randomised trial to investigate the physiological effects of exergames.
They measured the cardiovascular effects, including heart rate, blood pressure, efficiency of oxygen consumption (referred to as double product), and endothelial function (for maintaining blood fluidity), as well as recording enjoyment levels of volunteers with type 1 diabetes after either playing active video games or running on a treadmill with moderate intensity.
They took readings immediately after, 30 minutes after and 24 hours after the activity, repeating in twice-weekly sessions for three weeks.
Their results, published in Games for Health Journal, found that playing active video games gave very similar physiological effects to the traditional treadmill exercising, and blood glucose levels dropped to safe levels following both types of exercise.
The main difference the researchers found was that participants found the video games much more motivating and enjoyable than traditional exercise.
The game element of scoring points, earning badges and being rewarded for effort also helped encourage the participants to repeat the exercise and try and improve their performance over time.
Dr Pooya Soltani, researcher at CAMERA, based at the University of Bath, said: “Exercise is already recommended by doctors as a drug-free way of managing diabetics’ blood sugar levels, along with diet, but it can be difficult for people to stick to exercise routines long term.
“Whilst it’s not the magic solution to keeping active, we found that players enjoyed playing exergames way more than running.
“This is really important when adherence to traditional physical activities is generally low in diabetic patients.”
The researchers ran the trial using the Kinect Adventures game with the Kinect system on Xbox, which has a camera that tracks the players’ movements in the game.
Dr Soltani told us that while the team do not see exergames as a direct replacement for traditional exercise, they hope using the games could encourage patients to be active more often.
Dr Jorge Brito-Gomes, a researcher at Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco, Brazil, said: “Playing exergames could help some diabetics in managing a lifelong condition.
“Gamifying exercise not only takes your mind off the exertion, but working towards rewards in the game or even competing against friends helps motivate you to keep coming back to do more.”