Whether you’ve been playing video games for a year or a decade, you’ll have heard the age-old trope of “video games are bad for you and your health!”, while the sun shines through the window, illuminating your face.

Is this true though? Let’s find out.

A common stereotype you often hear is that those who play video games are lazy, anti-social teenagers who don’t know how to interact with the real world and therefore play games at home instead. This isn’t supported by real-world data.

Three different British and Canadian institutions discovered that those who play online are the best at communicating and more likely to come across as friendly.

One of the researchers, who attended over 20 separate events where gamers gather, said; “gamers aren’t the antisocial basement-dwellers we see in pop culture stereotypes; they’re highly social people.”

Another finding was that gamers often form even stronger relationships and bonds than those who don’t game, due to mutual interest and love of the games they play together.

Playing games online promotes being social and teaches key communication skills that teenagers might not get elsewhere. Thus, setting them up for better interactions in life and a much more active lifestyle in the real world.

Active video games

Active video games, if you haven’t heard the term before, generally apply to games where you have to move your body in order to actually play the game itself.

The Nintendo Wii is what brought this type of gaming to the mainstream, with motion control gaming offering a brand new way of improving your fitness without having to attend a gym.

Games such as Wii Fit and Wii Sports offer a different type of gaming experience and one that promotes a more active lifestyle while making you healthier, all at the same time.

A study conducted at the University of Oklahoma showed that playing motion control games was just as beneficial for your cardiovascular health as walking on a treadmill at a speed of 3.5mph.

The tests carried out were comparing heart rate, rates of exertion, and how much energy was spent, of children 10-13 while they performed different tasks. One was playing active video games, another walking on a treadmill, and the basic watching television.

What was most interesting is that the exercise tasks (active gaming, walking) burned the same amount of calories, which was almost three times as much as just watching TV.

Remember then, when someone tells you that gaming is for lazy people and it doesn’t help you keep fit or develop social skills, show them this article, then invite them to play a game with you!