Playing video games may make you smarter but regular exercise does not, scientists have said. Researchers found gamers scored better on memory, attention, and reasoning skills compared to those who did not play video games.Results also showed that moderate-level exercise of 150 minutes per week – in line with the NHS guidelines – did not improve a person’s memory and thinking skills, but instead boosted their mental health.

What the research found

The team described the findings, published in an online portal called PsyArXiv, as “surprising” because they contradict the widely-held belief that exercise can improve cognition skills such as learning, attention, perception, and memory.

Professor Adrian Owen, a neuroscientist from Western University in Canada, said: “People who frequently play video games, that is five or more hours per week for a single type of game, performed cognitively, on average, like people who were 13.7 years younger (who did not play video games). Individuals who engaged infrequently with video games, played less than five hours per week across all kinds of games, performed like people 5.2 years younger.”

He also explained that those who did not meet the NHS recommendations for physical activity “were twice as likely to suffer from depression and 1.5 times more likely to have a generalised anxiety disorder”.

Surprising benefits of video games

Prof Owen said, “I was surprised that video games improved cognition, whereas regular exercise did not, in part because we have shown conclusively in the past that computerised ‘brain training’ games do not improve cognitive function. However, the sorts of games that frequent gamers play nowadays are really quite different from consumer brain training games. Typically, they are highly engaging, strategic and may enhance visual attention and processing speed, and problem-solving abilities, through intense repetition and practice."

He further elaborated, “Any gamer also knows that these games are designed to activate the reward systems of the brain, which leads to the release of neurotransmitters like dopamine. This may also have long-term effects on cognitive function. As for exercise not affecting cognition, that was also a surprise, given the World Health Organisation recommendations that moderate exercise can benefit cognition."

“However, that we only looked at the long-term effects of regular exercise so it may well be that a short burst of vigorous exercise does affect cognition – as many people report feeling ‘sharper’ after a workout.”

For the study, conducted by Prof Owen and his colleagues at the Science Museum Group in the UK, 1,000 adults, aged between 18 and 87, were asked to fill in a survey answering questions about their health and lifestyle, including medical conditions, level of education, and employment status. They also took part in brain tests that measured different aspects of cognition such as learning, attention, perception, and memory skills.

Those taking part were also asked to estimate the average number of hours per week they spent playing video games within the past 12 months. These included puzzle games such as Minecraft, Civilization, Hearthstone, and Roblox, action role-playing games such as The Witcher, Mass Effect, Fallout 4, Skyrim, Grand Theft Auto, and Assassin’s Creed, and sports games such as Fifa, NHL, Mario Kart, Need for Speed and Rocket League.

Prof Owen said the findings, in the future, could “help us choose activities that promote healthy cognitive ageing." He will present the research on October 19 at the Manchester Science Festival, which runs from October 18-27 at the Science and Industry Museum in the city.

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