NEWS COMMENT: Survey – 90% boys, 75% girls own computer games

According to the Irish Independent newspaper, a survey by
the South Eastern Health Board and the Waterford Institute of Technology
carried out on schoolboys and girls between 9 and 11 years has found 90% boys
and 75% girls have computer games at home.

In a fit of simplicity, the website of the Dublin radio
station ‘Newstalk’ summed up the results “children who spend most time
playing computer games spend far less time doing physical exercise and are more
overweight”. Thanks Newstalk, we’d have never guessed not doing exercise
would make people fat. 

“Certainly Irish children are at the upper end of the
European scale and closer to the American figures for computer games,”
Michael Harrison, a lecturer in exercise science at WIT told the Independent.

Unlike some recent stories in

UK

tabloids, beyond the headline ‘Obesity grows as kids ditch sport for Tomb
Raider’, the Irish Independent article manages to be balanced, stating

Ireland

ranks lowly for sport at school.

John Treacy of the Irish Sports Council said that it’s up to
parents first, adding “we have to make sure there is sport and physical
activities available to everyone, not just those who excel at it”, pointing out
even his children play PlayStation.

Niall O’Hanrahan, MD of Sony Computer Entertainment Ireland,
added that it clearly wouldn’t be good for anyone to play computer games for
four hours in a row.

In stopping obesity, a balance is exactly what is needed;
the balance has to include physical activity at home, as well as school;
however, our eating – not going into kinds of food – but our ’supper-sized
meal’ over eating culture cannot be ignored.

Cian Ginty