• Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!

Video gaming linked to unhealthy diet, poor sleep quality and lower physical activity in new Study

AJUMP23

AJUMP23

Parody of actual AJUMP23
We must get up and move fellow gamers.


Highlights

  • High-frequency gamers (>10 h/wk) demonstrated significantly poorer diet quality, higher body mass index, and impaired sleep quality compared to low-frequency gamers.
  • Diet quality was negatively associated with BMI and perceived stress, but positively associated with alcohol consumption and cognitive eating restraint.
  • Physical inactivity and childhood gaming frequency were correlated with diet quality.
  • Multiple regression analysis revealed that gaming hours per week were an independent predictor of poorer diet quality.
Click to expand...



Objectives

Video gaming is highly prevalent among university students, yet its health associations remain poorly understood. This study examined relationships between video gaming frequency and health in Australian university students.

Methods

A cross-sectional survey of 317 Western Australian university students assessed gaming habits, diet quality (Diet Quality Tool), physical activity (International Physical Activity Questionnaire), sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index), eating behaviors (Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire), and perceived stress (Perceived Stress Scale). Participants were categorized into tertiles based on gaming frequency (low [0–5 h/wk], moderate [6–10 h/wk], and high [>10 h/wk]).

Results

High-frequency gamers had significantly poorer diet quality scores (median 45.0 versus 50.0, P < 0.001), higher BMI (median 26.3 versus 22.2 kg/m², P < 0.001), and worse sleep quality (PSQI score 7.0 versus 6.0, P < 0.001) compared to low-frequency gamers. Correlation analyses confirmed these associations in which gaming frequency negatively correlated with diet quality (r = −0.26, P < 0.001) and physical activity (r = −0.13, P = 0.03) and positively correlated with BMI (r = 0.38, P < 0.001). Multiple regression analysis revealed total gaming hours independently predicted poorer diet quality (β = −0.16, P = 0.02) after controlling for demographic and lifestyle factors.

Conclusions

Higher video gaming frequency was associated with poorer diet quality and increased BMI among university students. These findings suggest excessive gaming may contribute to adverse health outcomes. Public health interventions targeting excessive or high gaming levels and promoting healthy lifestyle habits in university populations are warranted.
 
giphy.gif
 
You know, there's a unique study that says that if you do nothing, just sit on your ass all day and watch TV, eating tacos and washing it down with cola, you can actually worsen your health.
In everything in this life there should be common sense and measure, and everything will be fine with you.
 
AJUMP23 said:
Public health interventions targeting excessive or high gaming levels and promoting healthy lifestyle habits in university populations are warranted.
Click to expand...
I can agree with them all the way up to the very last sentence in the OP
 
jshackles said:
I can agree with them all the way up to the very last sentence in the OP
Click to expand...

Sure, why the conclusion that the government is always the solution to a problem not of its making. The individual can decide how they want to live. I would just encourage you to get up and move, we don't need some agency saying make sure you move. Because their solution would be that you have ti install a cut off switch in a console after 2 hours a day.
 
Stupid study, video gaming doesn't cause unhealthy diet, lack of exercise, or poor sleep habits, but is more likely to be a high frequency hobby for people who are doing those things otherwise. It's like saying watching TV a lot is linked to all those other things. Of course it is, but it's just a symptom of an overall unhealthy lifestyle.
 
touchfuzzy said:
Stupid study, video gaming doesn't cause unhealthy diet, lack of exercise, or poor sleep habits, but is more likely to be a high frequency hobby for people who are doing those things otherwise. It's like saying watching TV a lot is linked to all those other things. Of course it is, but it's just a symptom of an overall unhealthy lifestyle.
Click to expand...
This.
 
touchfuzzy said:
Stupid study, video gaming doesn't cause unhealthy diet, lack of exercise, or poor sleep habits, but is more likely to be a high frequency hobby for people who are doing those things otherwise. It's like saying watching TV a lot is linked to all those other things. Of course it is, but it's just a symptom of an overall unhealthy lifestyle.
Click to expand...
The study doesn't say that high frequency gaming cause those issues, it just says they're linked.

But it still stupid. It might as well have been a study that finds links between high frequency gaming and sedentarism, which is a more direct correlation to the problems mentioned.

I hope this study wasn't paid for by someone's taxes.
 
Who's surprised? It's always been an unhealthy hobby, same as being addicted to anything on-screen for hours. All studies done thoughout decades have shown same results. Stereotypes don't come out of nowhere and gamer stereotype isn't exactly attractive.

That said, Younger generation has a lot more normies and hot girls thankfully so its not pure embarrassing being associated with the likes of 'immature boys', not that I can remember talking about video games irl since a long time now.
 
touchfuzzy said:
Stupid study, video gaming doesn't cause unhealthy diet, lack of exercise, or poor sleep habits, but is more likely to be a high frequency hobby for people who are doing those things otherwise. It's like saying watching TV a lot is linked to all those other things. Of course it is, but it's just a symptom of an overall unhealthy lifestyle.
Click to expand...

I think this is the right conclusion. Gaming doesn't cause it, but people that game tend to have unhealthy lives also game.
 
AJUMP23 said:
Sure, why the conclusion that the government is always the solution to a problem not of its making. The individual can decide how they want to live. I would just encourage you to get up and move, we don't need some agency saying make sure you move. Because their solution would be that you have ti install a cut off switch in a console after 2 hours a day.
Click to expand...
Pretty sure this already happens in China for under 18 year olds.
 
I've noticed that as well. When I invest more time in gaming I tend to relax on other areas of my life, specially the health related ones. I rarely play for 10 hrs a week but it gets tough to be a grown up, be healthy and find time for gaming as well.
 
And they need to study 317 poor Australians to find this brilliant conclusion?

No shit, Sherlock
 
Last edited:
My BMI is 19.1 right now, sometimes its 18.5 if I'm not eating well, sometimes its as high as 20 if I'm eating more than normal.

I eat about 1500 calories a day, if that. Its certainly nothing to do with gaming, its due to decades of extra curricular chemical activities, meaning my appetite is basically non existent.

When I was employed I walked 10-15k steps a day just being my busy bee self, now I'm out of work thats fallen away and I'm getting hardly any.

New job soon if this week goes well thankfully. That Sony/TCL news actually could mean a job for me in the industry I want too, all I want to do is talk about TVs all day.
 
If you're spending a gazillion hours in front of your TV and late into the night eating junk food, you should stop doing that.
 
Pretty sure the 8+ hours a day I spend sitting at a desk working take a bigger toll on my physical and mental health than the 2 hours a day i spend playing video games.
 
This could be said with almost anything, it's all about moderation and responsibility. Some people lack those things, but not every single person by any means. Hell, the older you get, you NEED to have those things on lock for obvious reasons, lol. But when you're younger and you have time to kill, I think it's more common to come across poor diet, sleeping, and physical activity being linked to it.

I feel like that was me in my mid to late teens. But after that I always made sure to remain active, eat better, etc. I will say by the time I hit 24 and got my first game industry gig my sleeping habits went to absolute shit. But they got better with each passing year since then.
 
Oh and for all my late night/insomniac brothers get a Vitamin C serum and tap it under your eyelids, works a treat for me to not look like Louis Rossman on a daily basis.

Rituals have one for £19 but it lasts me a the better part of a year, probably there's cheaper ones but the women that work there are cute and they give me a tea.
 
Danny22 said:
Who's surprised? It's always been an unhealthy hobby, same as being addicted to anything on-screen for hours. All studies done thoughout decades have shown same results. Stereotypes don't come out of nowhere and gamer stereotype isn't exactly attractive.

That said, Younger generation has a lot more normies and hot girls thankfully so its not pure embarrassing being associated with the likes of 'immature boys', not that I can remember talking about video games irl since a long time now.
Click to expand...
We'd say more or less.

Because now women who are glued to social media like Instagram or Facebook are becoming more idiotic.
 
Gaming today it's easy with quick resume to stop playing and go exercise, it's a respected hobby for a long time where you can sit down, relax and enjoy a AAA experience.
 
Heimdall_Xtreme said:
We'd say more or less.

Because now women who are glued to social media like Instagram or Facebook are becoming more idiotic.
Click to expand...
The 'masses' have always been pretty stupid, pick any culture, any time era, any religion/ideology etc. That's why they're called the masses and why we don't see intelligent people when we picture these two words. The majority is never intelligent, that's almost a rule of life.

Atleast social media encourages a person to look good, maybe take care of your body, remain healthy, attract similar-league partners etc. Gaming doesn't even do that.
 
Last edited:
I played Hogwarts Legacy all day Saturday. Several hours of my character running up and down stairs. That castle is nothing but stairs.
I think all American schools should be held in a big castle. Kids would be graduating as super athlete.

But I sat on my butt playing a game about stairs.
 
Who is still funding these worthless studies? Next study will be exercise, rest, and balance diet linked to better overall health.
 
Last edited:
Danny22 said:
The 'masses' have always been pretty stupid, pick any culture, any time era, any religion/ideology etc. That's why they're called the masses and why we don't see intelligent people when we picture these two words. The majority is never intelligent, that's almost a rule of life.

Atleast social media encourages a person to look good, maybe take care of your body, remain healthy, attract similar-league partners etc. Gaming doesn't even do that.
Click to expand...
More or less Friend....

1. Social media encourages people to show off their possessions and lifestyles in an unhealthy way, generating envy, stress, and even depression.

2. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle... some people develop anorexia or follow ketogenic diets that are harmful to their health without supervision.

3. Toxic people make comments and engage in harassment, which is also harmful.

4. Some women are influenced by erroneous and exaggerated norms, and many men fall into their trap. Videos like "If a man does this... it means he thinks that" are damaging.

5. Video games, especially with events, allow you to meet people and build a good social circle.

6. Having this hobby is not a norm or a prejudice.

That's my perspective... social media is also a mistake and has harmed people more than other media.

But on the other hand, it has helped to provide information we didn't know before.
 
Last edited:
People who are unemployed and out of shape tend to play more video games. Because that's one of the few things they can afford to do.

As usual those 'scientists' reverse the cause and effect.
 
I must be super fat because I game 100+ hours a week. Next they will tell me using a treadmill is bad for your legs.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Sony Patents PSSR Breakthrough To Eliminate FPS Drops And Lower Internal Resolution In Games
2 3 4 5 6
259
3K
Lagspike_exe replied
One-Third of U.S. Video Game Industry Workers Were Laid Off in 2025, GDC Study Reveals
News  2
86
1K
StreetsofBeige replied
New PlayStation Portal software update adds 1080p High Quality mode and UX refinements
2 3
129
1K
Steve Holt replied
Poncle (Vampire Survivors devs) working on over 15 new games. Opening new studios in Japan and Italy.
10
263
Hyet replied
What's new to you gaming wise, in 2026?
48
1K
Durin replied
Top Bottom