AP - West Virginia, which has one of the
nation's worst obesity problems, is expanding a project that uses a
video game to boost students' physical activity.
All of the state's 157 middle schools are
expecting to get the video game "Dance Dance Revolution," and officials
hope to put it in all 753 public schools within three years. A pilot
project began in 20 schools last spring.
Students 10 to 14 years old are being targeted
first because it is a key point in children's development, said Linda
Carson, a professor at West Virginia University's
School of Physical Education in
Morgantown.
Those are the ages "when children really begin
making more of their own decisions and a time when they could easily
choose to be more sedentary," said Carson, who is conducting an ongoing
research project into the video game's health benefits.
Game players move their feet on a special mat
to correspond to arrows that scroll on the TV screen. The player must
tap the same symbols on the mat at just the right time to do well.
The game is not meant to replace physical
education and health classes. Rather, it is one more option that may
appeal to students who often dislike other sports.
"If we can get children to change their
behavior at a young age they hopefully will grow up to be healthy,
active adults, which would have a positive effect on health care costs,"
said Carl Callison with Mountain State Blue Cross.
West Virginia is consistently among the top
three states for obesity, with about a third of its residents considered
obese and even more overweight, according to the state Bureau of Public
Health.
Nearly 46 percent of 31,000 fifth-graders
screened in a coronary artery risk project from 1999-2005 were
considered overweight or obese, according to the Institute of Medicine
guidelines.
Extra weight can lead to high blood pressure,
diabetes, arthritis, some cancers and other problems. West Virginia
leads the nation in high blood pressure and is fourth in diabetes.
"One out of three children born in West
Virginia today will have diabetes by the time they grow up," said Nidia
Henderson, health promotions manager for the public employees insurance
program. "That's a devastating statistic and not acceptable."
The state also has turned to the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta for help.
The school project starts with the state's
64,880 middle school students and then calls for an expansion into high
schools. By year three, state officials hope to have the project set up
in the state's elementary schools.
Overall, the game is expected to be available
to 279,788 public school students statewide.
The statewide project is expected to cost
$500,000, with part of the funding coming from PEIA and Mountain State
Blue Cross Blue Shield. Game manufacturer Konami Digital Entertainment
in Redwood City, Calif., has agreed to provide $75,000. The state is
seeking private funding for the remainder.
Each school is to
receive a game console, at least two dance pads and software at a cost
of about $740.
References:
worldhealth.net
AP
