The allure of video games to children seems insurmountable. Such an important question deserves a definitive and confident answer from those individuals, including myself, who are involved in promoting youth physical activity. Unfortunately, there seems no apparent answer to the pervasive and permanent threat of video games to the time children decide to spend playing outdoors. Indeed, the outlook for increasing after school activity levels of the nations youth is bleak. For many children, the choice to play the latest video game instead of kicking a ball around outside, is an easy one.
Video games have a strangle-hold on youth leisure time.
These outcomes and feelings were once, perhaps exclusively, provided to children by physical play. Video games pose an ominous threat to the future health of the nation's children. There is no obvious answer as to how exercise might again become fashionable for children in the after-school hours. Given this situation, I urge those involved in youth activity promotion to focus their efforts on the hours children spend in-school. Specifically, the persistent advocacy of mandatory, structured, regular, and enjoyable school physical education.