Gaming does NOT cause rickets
It’s relatively common knowledge that the PS3Vault staff (myself included) is easily amused – either that, or there is a lot happening in the world to laugh about.
One article that tickled us recently was METRO’s article ‘Video gaming leads to surge in rickets’. It infers that medical research carried out Newcastle University has recognised our beloved pastime as the cause for an increase in rickets cases, a disturbingly common condition among British children linked to chronic vitamin D deficiency. Sounds a bit far-fetched, doesn’t it?
Well it seems there was some confusion on METRO’s part according to Dr Timothy Cheetham, Senior Lecturer in Paediatric Endocrinology and co-author of the alluded-to rickets study. As reported by PS3 Attitude, he commented:
“I understand METRO has said that we have linked computers to rickets, whereas we are actually saying [that] lack of outdoor activity in childhood is a risk for poor [vitamin] D nutritional state. We do not say that gaming causes rickets.”
What’s more, Cheetham’s fellow professor Simon Pearce has described METRO’s interpretation of the University’s periodical as “a classic piece of dodgy, lazy journalism”. Ouch.
Today’s lesson: don’t believe everything you read – that, and ensure your kids get out once in a while.
Filed under: Console news, Games
Gaming increases the risk of more cushion for da pushin!
I love the way certain areas of journalism use gaming as a scapegoat for every medical and social problem on the planet. They could have used reading or watching t.v. or any other indoors activity, but no they must use gaming. Gaming doesn’t cause rickets, not going outside in the sun and/or having a vitamin D deficiency causes rickets. Staying indoors just exacerbates the problem.
Haha, I read this article on the way to school and found it absurd – some of the statistics were ridiculous anyway: 100 children treated for rickets every year, that’s one case every 3.65 days if I’m correct, which is a miniscule number! I have to agree with Declan, it’s just a cheap scapegoat for journalists to blame something oft criticised for grabbing the media’s attention in the wrong ways (take, for example, Modern Warfare 2’s No Russian airport mission)…