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Wii no substitute for real exercise
By Christina Quick | January 3, 2008
If you bought your kids a Nintendo Wii for Christmas hoping to get them off the couch, don’t count on it to improve their health.
The active electronic gaming system, which requires players to wield a hand wand rather than pushing buttons, has been touted as a healthful alternative to more sedentary video games.
While a study from Britain says Wii gives kids a wee bit better workout than Xbox 360, the researchers caution it’s not nearly enough to meet a child’s physical activity needs.
Bottom line: Some video games in moderation may be fine. But there’s no substitute for a healthy dose of old-fashioned play. Whether it’s Xbox, Playstation, or Wii, a good policy is to set limits on the electronic toys and then send the kids to the backyard with a few balls and jump ropes.
To read a report on the Wii research, click here.
And if you haven’t yet seen my story on nature-deprived, video-game-playing kids, check it out.
Topics: In the news, Trends, Parenting |
January 3rd, 2008 at 2:54 pm
I agree. Children spend too much time indoors doing nothing. Anything that gets them outside where they can move and use their creativity is a winner.