Graeme Klass
17 March 2009
I think that the number of activity-based games will increase:
SCOTTISH health and education experts last night backed calls for interactive video games, such as the Nintendo Wii, to be used as a key weapon in the fight to tackle obesity among children.
Sir Liam Donaldson, the UK government’s chief medical officer, yesterday recommended in his annual report that children be given gaming systems as part of a strategy to address sedentary lifestyles.
He said that, although the more traditional video games such as PlayStation can be a major cause of overweight and obesity in children and young adults, interactive multimedia games such as Sony EyeToy and Nintendo Wii Sports can raise the heart rate and increase the number of calories burnt by 42 per cent – offering a way of providing the recommended daily physical activity for children in their homes.
Graeme Klass
27 May 2008
From Forbes:
10. Nintendo Power Pad
9. Dance Dance Revolution
8. Yourself Fitness
7. EyeToy: Kinetic
6. Wii Sports
5. Nike+
4. Let’s Yoga
3. Wii Fit
2. My Weight-Loss Coach
1. Active Life: Outdoor Fitness
Graeme Klass
14 January 2008
A while back I wrote about the idea of schools purchasing Wii’s to help kids get active at schools. Now this from Chelsea Intermediate School:
When the school year began, Don Prorok and the other gym teachers at Chelsea Intermediate School wrote a grant proposing to buy the Nintendo Wii systems to implement into the physical education curriculum. The interactive video game forces players out of their seats and makes them use their arms and legs, which allows for a cardio workout.
Prorok said that convincing administration wasn’t difficult at all.
“They loved it and they were right on board with it,” he said. “Our administration really supports us in what we do.”
The school bought seven systems with 28 controllers, also purchasing Wii Sports game that comes with tennis, bowling, boxing, baseball and golf. The whole school can use the systems, but the gym classes have priority.
Fellow gym teacher Kay Elam said that they were all excited about the game because it brings technology into the classroom and helps develop positive attributes in the children.
(Hat Tip: Ripten)
Graeme Klass
27 December 2007
Apparently playing the Wii uses an extra 60 calories per hour compared to playing an XBox; which is equivalent of walking an extra 12 minutes.
Graeme Klass
20 September 2007
This looks really good. Wii Fit, made by Nintendo, is designed to use their innovative gaming platform to make getting fit fun. Watch at the 2:00 minute mark when the kids use it to play balancing games. Also note on one of the screens it calculates and tracks your Body Mass Index (BMI).
UPDATE: Wii Fit in the Top 25 sales at Amazon.com
Graeme Klass
15 September 2007
This is what a wrote back on another site I created:
Last night’s Australian Budget allocated $124.4 Million for the “Active After-School Communities” program to combat childhood obesity. A worthy pursuit indeed. However, recent research from Liverpool John Moores University showed that playing the Wii results in a child losing up to 12.25kg.
So… let’s say, hypothetically, that the $124.4 Million was spent on Wii’s to combat childhood obesity. That’s 311,000 consoles distributed over about 7,000 schools across Australia. That’s 44 consoles per school. Imagine an after-school program like that!
For the uninitiated, the Wii (which is the now the most popular gaming console) is a video game console that requires players to get up out of their seat and physically wave the controller around to play the game. Here is a clip of Wii Boxing:
