Cardiovascular effects in adolescents while they are playing video games: a potential health risk factor?

We analyzed heart rate (HR), systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP, DBP), oxygen consumption, and carbon dioxide production in 17 male adolescents during a racing simulation video game (VG) and compared to resting state (RS) and exercise testing (ET) measures. We were able to demonstrate a significant (p<.005) increase from RS to VG concerning HR (+13.1 bpm), SBP (+20.8 mmHg), and DBP (+12.1 mmHg) with SBP and DBP elevations exceeding 2 SD in all children and 14/17 children, respectively. The energy consumption during VG (max 1.71 kcal/min) was unaltered compared to RS and significantly lower compared to ET even at the starting strain of 25 W (1.94 kcal/min). Hemodynamic parameters tested demonstrated lower HR, unchanged SBP, and higher DBP during the VG compared with ET. Comparing all measured parameters it can be said that the relation of blood pressure and energy consumption during VG might not be favorable.