As things have been turned upside down, the prevalence of gaming as a way to kill time, entertain ourselves, and relax has been on the rise. According to Nielsen Ratings, over 82% of global consumers consumed content related to video games putting gaming in rarified air.
To put this in a better perspective, over 76% of U.S. households have multiple devices capable of being connected online. Think about that for a moment, with over 300 million people in the United States,
76% of those people are using devices online at some point in time. In fact, over 46% of devices are being used for consuming gaming content in one form or another at this point in time.
Let’s put this into a better perspective using math. 76% of approximately 300 million is 228 million. Now, if you consider that according to Statista, over 66% of the general populace play video games on connected devices. That means that 66% of the 228 million with connected devices play video games which equals approximately 150 million Americans now playing video games at any time.
That’s a lot of people who game in the United States.
And this trend is even more impressive when you think about the number of entertainment options available to every American.
From laptops to consoles, phones, and even the rise of AR goggles, gaming quietly becomes one of the top pastimes in the United States.
This growth is so strong that Apple has added to its offerings a game store and jumped into the AR product niche with the rumored release of the Apple AR headset.
With so many people playing games at any one time, the question has to be asked, are there any health issues related to playing video games?
Health Issues Associated With Gaming
As with any activity, doing too much without enough downtime for the body to recover may lead to overuse issues such as strain and pain in the eyes, neck, shoulders, and hands.
A common issue with gamers stems from “gamers thumb” and “trigger finger” to tennis elbow to carpal tunnel syndrome. With any of these disorders, sufferers inflame the tendons that support the hand, fingers, thumb, wrist, or elbow and can be painful. The injuries often feel like a burning sensation in the area and radiate outward from the inflammation.
Another health issue with too much gaming is the correlation of body weight related to being sedentary. Sitting in one place for too long can profoundly impact overall health, especially with cardiovascular and respiratory functions. Studies also show that regardless of hunger, typical sedentary individuals tend to consume too many calories, which can accelerate the effects of a sedentary lifestyle.
Video Games And Sexual Dysfunction
One other form of health concern for the regular gamer is a correlation between too much gameplay and sexual function.
Recent studies on the effects of video gameplay and sexual health found that regular gamers suffer premature ejaculation at a lower frequency than others who don’t play regularly.
While that statistic may be good news for some, the trade-off is that gamers experience a higher than average level of erectile dysfunction. There are many different reasons for this, but it may be tied to the brain’s dopamine and result from overstimulation from video games.
Erectile dysfunction (ED) can be a symptom of significant health issues, so you shouldn’t treat it lightly. Often ED can cause friction in relationships that may become too difficult to overcome, leading to break-ups.
If you’re curious about more information regarding erectile dysfunction causes and treatments, you should speak with a healthcare professional.
Playing video games has become one of the top pastimes for over half the United States population. As a form of entertainment, gaming also allows players to connect to others critical during the past year of shutdowns and reopenings.
Just be aware lurking behind the screen can be some negative side-effects, so it’s recommended to keep your gaming down to an hour or two a day.