Video games beneficial for older adults: Research

Two recent studies show that Video game technology has significant benefits for older adults by providing cognitive stimulation and being a source of social interaction, exercise and fun.

The first of the studies was co-authored by Hannah Marston of German Sport University Cologne, Germany, and Stuart Smith of Neuroscience Research, Randwick, New South Wales, Australia, the journal Games for Health Journal reports.

"The elderly often forsake their lifelong activities in exchange for the safety, security, and care of institutional living," says the journal's editor-in-chief Bill Ferguson.

"This trade-off need not require the sacrifice of physical activity and fitness. Furthermore, videogames offer an escape from routine. All of these benefits can improve the well-being of elderly adults," adds Ferguson.

Digital games offer a home-based method to support behaviour modification, motivating patients to take better care of themselves and to self-mange chronic conditions, according to a German Sport statement.

The second study was conducted in three European countries that defined and compared the specific features of videogames that would most interest older adults, the journal Games for Health Journal reports.