Physiological Responses to Active Video Games Compared to Treadmill Walking and TV Watching in Obese Children and Adolescents

The purpose of this study was to examine the physiological responses to playing different active video games (AVG), as well as document the activity level exerted during AVG in relation to treadmill walking (TM) and watching television (TV). 20 youth (age 11-17 yr) with obesity were recruited from the Healthy Lifestyle Clinic and underwent testing under six randomized conditions: 1) TM, 2) TV, 3) Fitnexx, 4) river rush (RRH), 5) reflex ridge (RFR), and 6) space pop (SP). RRH, RFR, and SP are active video games for the Xbox 360. Fitnexx is a prototype AVG. Each test lasted approximately ten minutes each with ten minutes between conditions and participants wore a wireless physiological monitor (Zephyr BioHarness™3) for all tests. Physical activity was assessed via accelerometer, along with heart rate (HR). Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) was also gathered for each condition. Repeated-measures ANOVA examined condition differences. Subjects were age 13.3 ± 2.1 years old with BMI 38.7 ± 7.9 (kg·m·s). Fitnexx had the highest activity level (0.63 ± 0.19g ~ jog), while activity levels for TM (0.20 ± 0.04g), RRH (0.29 ± 0.05g), RFR (0.31 ± 0.07g), and SP (0.21 ± 0.05g) were moderate (~walk), < 0.05. Fitnexx had the highest HR (157 ± 13 bpm; < 0.001), compared to TM (117 ± 18 bpm), RRH (128 ± 19 bpm), RFR (127 ± 18 bpm), and SP (122 ± 17 bpm), which were statistically similar. Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) was highest for Fitnexx (5 ± 4 RPE) compared to TM (2 ± 1 RPE) on 0-10 scale. TV had lowest activity, HR, and RPE ( < 0.04). Given these results, AVG can increase activity levels in youth with obesity and has potential as a therapeutic tool for obese children.