‘Does your child run at the sight of apples, bananas and green leafy vegetables? If yes, video games based on a serious theme, could help your child increase his/her fruit and vegetable consumption’, says an interesting study.
Eating adequate amounts of healthy food substances is not only ideal for a healthy lifestyle, but can also reduce the risk of some chronic diseases — including heart diseases and certain types of cancer as well.
Findings showed that video games based on a serious theme are designed to entertain as well as promote behavioural change and create specific plans with goals, which help children improve fruit and vegetable intake at specific meals.
“By using a serious themed video game, we saw an increase in meal-specific vegetable intake at dinner and fruit intake at breakfast, lunch and snacks time by children”, said lead author Karen Cullen, Professor at Baylor College of Medicine in the US.
According to the study published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 400 fourth and fifth-grade students played 10 episodes of Squires Quest-II — a serious online video game that promotes fruit and vegetable intake.
Six months after the intervention, results showed improvements in both fruit and vegetable intake in participants. Of the 400 participants, 79 per cent reported to have met all goals during game play.