title: Measuring physical inactivity: do current measures provide an accurate view of "sedentary" video game time?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Measures of screen time are often used to assess sedentary behaviour. Participation in activity-based video games (exergames) can contribute to estimates of screen time, as current practices of measuring it do not consider the growing evidence that playing exergames can provide light to moderate levels of physical activity. This study aimed to determine what proportion of time spent playing video games was actually spent playing exergames.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were collected via a cross-sectional telephone survey in South Australia. Participants aged 18 years and above (n = 2026) were asked about their video game habits, as well as demographic and socioeconomic factors. In cases where children were in the household, the video game habits of a randomly selected child were also questioned.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, 31.3% of adults and 79.9% of children spend at least some time playing video games. Of these, 24.1% of adults and 42.1% of children play exergames, with these types of games accounting for a third of all time that adults spend playing video games and nearly 20% of children's video game time.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A substantial proportion of time that would usually be classified as "sedentary" may actually be spent participating in light to moderate physical activity.
authors.affiliation: Population Research and Outcome Studies, Department of Medicine, University of Adelaide, Level 3, 122 Frome Street, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia.
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fullerton
authors.affiliation: Population Research and Outcome Studies, Department of Medicine, University of Adelaide, Level 3, 122 Frome Street, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia.
authors.forename: Anne W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.affiliation: Population Research and Outcome Studies, Department of Medicine, University of Adelaide, Level 3, 122 Frome Street, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia.
authors.forename: Eleonora
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dal Grande
authors.affiliation: Division of Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia.
authors.forename: Narelle
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Berry
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003625:Data Collection; D015444:Exercise; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity; D057185:Sedentary Behavior; D013021:South Australia; D018910:Video Games; D055815:Young Adult