Childhood Obesity - Do you have an overweight child? We offer tips to help your child lose weight and get fit!

Researchers have revealed that the content of online videogames can influence a child's food choices -- for better or for worse.

• Researchers with Georgetown University asked nine-years-olds to play one of two different versions of a videogame.
  
• In one version, the idea was to make a character eat less nutritious foods, such as potato chips, soda, candy and chocolate chip cookies.
  
• The second version rewarded the children with points if their characters ate healthy foods like fruits and vegetables.

"Within only 10 minutes of exposure to the videogames, our results revealed that children selected whatever snacks were being marketed by the games, whether they were healthy or not," the researchers reported in a July 14 ScienceDaily article.

The Georgetown study was published in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

Labels: nutrition, advertising, video_games

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Skipping meals or spending too much time in front of "screens" contributes to childhood obesity, according to a new study from Pennsylvania State University.

Dr. Molly Martin and her colleagues collected information on 2,500 pairs of twins, siblings, or half-siblings in order to determine what non-genetic factors influence whether a child is overweight. They found that certain aspects of a family's lifestyle, such as sitting down for regular meals together and being physically active during leisure hours, can help keep children slim, regardless of the family's education, socio-economic levels, the children's birth weights, etc.

"Not skipping meals seems to be the biggest factor in weight control," Dr. Martin said. "When you miss a meal, you are more likely to overeat later."

Another important factor was how much time the family spent watching television or playing video games.

This study appears in the Journal of American Sociology.

Labels: video_games, skipping_meals, TV

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While it may be true that interactive games like those made for Nintendo's Wii console encourage players to get up and move, a study has determined that these games don't keep children active enough to keep them healthy. One example of research that was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine was the discovery that real tennis is 77 percent more physically demanding than the video version.

"The study authors calculated that in a typical week, a child who played Wii sports would use about 2% more energy than one playing sedentary computer games. They said the increase was 'trivial', and the activity was not intense enough to be counted in the recommended daily amount of physical activity."

Though Wii-like gaming may offer some benefit to a child's metabolic health, the research is inconclusive in this area. The bottom line, experts say, is that virtual tennis or boxing are no substitute for the real thing. Source: Sydney Morning Herald

Labels: exercise, video_games, sports

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While parents are working out at the Cooper Aerobics Center in McKinney, Texas, their kids are getting a workout of their own. The center has created "The Corral", a kids' play area complete with interactive video games using both Nintendo's Wii and the Cybex Trazer.

"Both machines incorporate movement with game play. The Wii uses a wireless wand that lets kids do everything from play tennis and baseball to race a cow over rows of scarecrows. The Trazer uses a sensor on a belt buckle that gets kids to jump, dodge and throw in games where kids compete with a virtual soccer goalie and jump and reach to keep exploding bombs from falling on them."

Fitness director David McGarry said the idea for The Corral came as a response to growing childhood obesity concerns. He wanted to create something more than just a daycare center. So far, The Corral is a big hit among both kids and parents. Read more at McKinneyMessenger.com.

Labels: exercise, video_games, gyms

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As the British government continues trying to tackle the problem of childhood obesity, plans are in the works to limit the amount of time children spend playing video games.

"Popular consoles such as the Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii can be fitted with devices to restrict the amount of time children use them and parents could be given advice on how to activate these limiters."

Schools may also begin enforcing nutritional standards, not just on school-provided meals, but on meals that students bring from home as well. Read more at Telegraph.co.uk.

Labels: exercise, video_games, activity

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Most people assume that kids spent more time outdoors being active during the summer months than they do during the school year. But a recent study found that kids actually gain weight over the summer. Excessive use of and exposure to media (video games, iPods, TiVo, etc) is considered one of the most likely causes.

"Considering that the average American child will see more than 40,000 ads on broadcast television alone in one year, and that 83 percent of the food ads in kids' sows are for fast food and sweets, its no wonder that the amount of time kids spend in front of a screen is directly linked to their risk of being obese."

Though it's not likely that parents can get kids to avoid TV and other media altogether, now is a good time for them to set some ground rules for the summer. Read more at HuffingtonPost.com.

Labels: video_games, summers, TV

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The United States Agriculture Department launched a contest for video designers to come up with games that children can play to teach them about nutrition and exercise. The contest is part of a government initiative led by First Lady Michelle Obama to combat childhood obesity.

Some in the videogame industry said the challenge was difficult, because they were used to designing games only for entertainment.

"Games with ulterior motives are a lot harder," said Joel Gonzales, of the International Game Developers Association.

Alex Fisher-Lasky, working at George Mason University, agreed.

"Everything goes smoothly until you start playing it and you realize it is not fun," he said. "You have to spend 60% of your time changing it, because the game is not fun."
 

Labels: prevention, video_games

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