Pilot Study of an Active Screen Time Game Correlates with Improved Physical Fitness in Minority Elementary School Youth

Abstract

Objective: The aim of our feasibility study was to examine the acceptability and utility of ''Dance Dance Revolution'' (DDR) (Konami of America, Redwood City, CA)) to increase physical fitness in 8-11-year-old black and Hispanic youth. Subjects and Methods: Twenty-eight 4 th and 5 th grade children attending an afterschool program participated. Outcomes included physical activity, physical fitness, use of home DDR, survey of safety and acceptability, anthropometrics, and fasting metabolic profile measured at baseline, 12 weeks, and 30 weeks. Results: At 12 weeks, physical fitness (maximum O 2 uptake [VO 2 max]) increased by 4.9 -9.9 percent and was sustained through 30 weeks, when the VO 2 max was 105.0 -9.9 percent (range, 93.0-133.9 percent) of baseline values. Absolute VO 2 max increased by 2.97 -4.99 mL/kg/minute (95% confidence interval 0.75-5.19, P = 0.013). Participants maintained an average of 1.12 hours/day of increased movement to music. Trends suggested increased total moderate-vigorous physical activity, decreased light activity, and a modest increase in sedentary screen time. There were no significant changes in body mass index, fasting lipids, or glucose. Participants and parents approved of the activity. Conclusion: DDR appears feasible and acceptable to minority youth. DDR may increase moderate-vigorous physical activity and improve physical fitness in at-risk populations.

Effects of Active Videogames on Physical Activity and Related Outcomes Among Healthy Children: A Systematic Review

“…75 In the other study, participants had access to a dance game at home and also in an afterschool program. 81 This study also provided each participant two dance mats at home and reported improved physical fitness and increased AVG play. 81 None of these strategies has been used sufficiently to reach a firm conclusion regarding the effects.…”

“…Effects of AVGs on habitual PA or change of PA A cross-sectional survey indicated a positive association between AVG play and PA. 88 Among the 21 intervention studies, [73][74][75][76][77][78][79][80][81][82][83][84][85][86][87][89][90][91][92][93][94] 13 were RCTs, and 4 RCTs 73-75,87 indicated they were pilot studies ( Table 4).…”

“…Two studies found AVGs increased children's PA in early sessions but not in later sessions. 74,76 Without a control group, the remaining five studies all reported positive effects of AVGs on PA. 79,81,82,92,93 Four 83,85,86,90 out of 11 studies reported positive intervention effects of AVGs on PA behavioral outcomes (including physical fitness) between an AVG and a non-AVG control group. Two self-reported PA measures had large effect sizes, 86 and one self-reported PA measure had a small effect size.…”

“…82 Two interventions were conducted in multiple settings. 75,81 One invited participants to a weekly multiplayer class in addition to AVG home play and found the dropout rate in the multiplayer group was significantly lower than in Self-reported MVPA increased significantly from baseline to 12 weeks for the I group and declined for the comparison group.…”

How Effective Are Active Videogames Among the Young and the Old? Adding Meta-analyses to Two Recent Systematic Reviews

“…Several studies have shown that active videogames can have beneficial effects on physical activity and related health outcomes. [10][11][12][13] On the other hand, several other studies have failed to find significant effects. 14,15 So how effective are active videogames?…”