Impacts of Video games on children health

The rise in technology and the widespread availability of internet and other technology oriented gadgets has led to the popularity of video games in most parts across the world. The trend is more eminent in the developed countries where both the kids and adults have adequate access to these provisions due to their ready availability. Video games can be played online over internet enhancements. In other cases, the applications are bought and installed in a computer where the players can frequently run the programs and play the games. In both cases, it would be important to note that there are cost implications involved. The games, especially in situations where they are not controlled lead to time consumption an aspect which may graduate into social backwardness. However argues that video games may have positive impacts on the mental and physical health of the players. The games enhance speedy and precise decision making while also shaping the player with the right abilities for team work. It can therefore be deduced that video games may have both positive and negative impacts on the player. Consequently, this paper examines the impacts of video games on the mental and physical health of children.

Running head: Impacts of Video games on children health 1
Impact of video games on children’s mental and physical health
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Impacts of Video games on children health 2
Impact of video games on children’s mental and physical health
Introduction
The rise in technology and the widespread availability of internet and other technology
oriented gadgets has led to the popularity of video games in most parts across the world. The
trend is more eminent in the developed countries where both the kids and adults have adequate
access to these provisions due to their ready availability. Video games can be played online over
internet enhancements. In other cases, the applications are bought and installed in a computer
where the players can frequently run the programs and play the games. In both cases, it would be
important to note that there are cost implications involved. The games, especially in situations
where they are not controlled lead to time consumption an aspect which may graduate into social
backwardness. However argues that video games may have positive impacts on the mental and
physical health of the players. The games enhance speedy and precise decision making while
also shaping the player with the right abilities for team work. It can therefore be deduced that
video games may have both positive and negative impacts on the player. Consequently, this
paper examines the impacts of video games on the mental and physical health of children.
Positive impacts
According to Ballard (2012), there has been numerous studies in a bid to understand the
effects of video games. The author notes that games come in various shapes. While some are
entertaining and relaxing, others are challenging hence providing the child with an appropriate
environment to learn. In addition, (Douglas, 2015) emphasizes that video games build teamwork
skills within the player which is therefore a positive impact on the mental well being of the child.
Most of the video games require the player to take the challenge against one or two opponents.

Impacts of Video games on children health 3
This process creates an environment where the player is able to learn from the others and how to
deal with them as well.
Video games are always characterized by the need for speed, quick and precise decisions.
This is what creates the edge and brings about a winner. Ferguson (2011) highlights that a child
who plays video games has their decision making skills enhanced. This is necessary as the skills
can be applied in certain real life situations for instance in sports and also in the field of
medicine. At the same time, video gaming does not only require speedy decisions, winning is
often punctuated by the precision of these decisions. It can therefore be noted that video games
enable the child to maintain accuracy in decision making, an aspect which can as well be applied
in other real life situations. The games also enhance proper coordination between the hands and
the eye. Video games allow the child to develop and control their motor skills right from a
tender age. The movement of limps as well as the coordination between the eye and the hand can
be regarded as a positive influence especially on the physical health of the child. The skills
developed here are also crucial in sports as well as puzzle solving. Finally, Gentile (2013)points
out that video games lead to the enhancement of cognitive functioning in children. When a
feature is repeated several times, the brain is moulded to ensure the task is performed better and
faster. Repeatedly taking part in video games enhances the development of neural pathways in
the brain which enables the player to solve issues not only during the games but also in real life.
Negative impacts
According to Hull (2014), the content of the video games plays a crucial role in
determining the nature of influence the game is likely to have on the players. To begin with, an
uncontrolled indulgence in video games may be accompanied by a variety of health issues.

Impacts of Video games on children health 4
Kilburn (2012) notes that sitting in one place for a long period of time increases chances of
obesity. The limps and joints may also grow weak due to over exertion. At the same time,
continuously staring the screen may interfere with the eye sight of the child. Secondly, video
games are often characterized by fun and excitement. This is a complete contrast to a typical day
in school with rules, tests, quizzes and more challenges. As a result, children may prefer to play
games because it is more exciting. This comes at the expense of their academic performance
since more time is dedicated to playing games. Video games therefore lead to decline in
academic performance among the children.
Additionally, video games expose children to wrong values. Most of the games are often
meant for the adult audience. The games are characterized by wrong social aspects such as
sexuality, profanity, racism and violence. The player may fail to decode these depictions in the
right way and attempt to do what they see in real life (Radoff, 2011). Furthermore, most children
prefer to play the games alone in their rooms despite the fact that most of these games are
multiplayer. This leads to negative impacts on the interpersonal skills of the player hence leading
to social disconnection. Finally, the violent content in the video games may lead to the
development of aggressive behavior among the children. This happens especially when things do
not go as planned leading to troublesome reactions.
In conclusion, video games have both positive and negative impacts on the mental and
physical health of the children. The games enhance team work, decision making, accuracy,
coordination and the development of cognitive functioning (Sherry, 2011). On the other hand,
video games lead to the emergence of health issues, social disconnection, and development of
aggressive behavior, poor academic performance and exposure to wrong values. Due to the
nature of these impacts, it is important for the parents to carefully choose the games that they

Impacts of Video games on children health 5
allow their children to play. The parents need to maintain a keen eye on the children while also
restricting the time they take on these games. At the same time, the games ought to be played in
a public area to allow the older people monitor the contents and hence advise the players
appropriately. Finally, there is the inevitable need to constantly monitor the children to deduce
any absurd behaviors which they may be developing due to gaming before providing the right
solutions.

Impacts of Video games on children health 6
References
Ballard, M. (2012). Social Context and Video Game Play: Impact on Cardiovascular and
Affective Responses. Mass Communication and Society. 15 (6), 875–898
Douglas, K. (2015). Violent Video Game Effects on Children and Adolescents Theory,
Research, and Public Policy. New York: Oxford University Press.
Ferguson, C. (2011). Call of (civic) duty: Action games and civic behavior in a large
sample of youth. Computers in Human Behavior. 27 (2),770–775.
Gentile, D. (2013). Public Policy and the Effects of Media Violence on Children. Social
Issues and Policy Review. 1, 15–61.
Hull, J. (2014). A longitudinal study of risk-glorifying video games and behavioral
deviance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 107 (2), 300–325
Kilburn, J. (2012). The public health risks of media violence: a meta-analytic
review. The Journal of Pediatrics. 154 (5), 759–763.
Radoff, J. (2011). Six wonderful things about video games. New York: Oxford
Sherry, J. (2011). The effects of violent video games on aggression: a meta-
analysis. Human Communication Research. 27(3), 4309–4319.