Researchers found a tipping point for video gaming and health

The study surveyed 317 students from five universities across Australia. Participants had a median age of 20 years, placing the focus squarely on young adults during a key stage of habit formation.

Comparing Light, Moderate, and Heavy Gamers

Researchers grouped students based on how much time they reported spending on video games each week. Those categories included low gamers (0-5 hours per week), moderate gamers (5-10 hours), and high gamers (10+ hours per week).

Health patterns were largely similar among students in the low and moderate groups. However, once gaming time went beyond 10 hours per week, clear differences began to emerge, with overall health indicators worsening among heavier gamers.

Professor Mario Siervo from the Curtin School of Population Health said the findings point to excessive gaming as the main concern rather than gaming itself.

"What stood out was students gaming up to 10 hours a week all looked very similar in terms of diet, sleep and body weight," Professor Siervo said.

"The real differences emerged in those gaming more than 10 hours a week, who showed clear divergence from the rest of the sample."

Diet Quality and Body Weight Changes

The study found that diet quality declined once weekly gaming time exceeded 10 hours. Students in the high gaming group were also more likely to be obese compared with those who played less.

High gamers recorded a median body mass index (BMI) of 26.3kg/m2. In contrast, low and moderate gamers fell within a healthier range, with median BMIs of 22.2kg/m2 and 22.8kg/m2 respectively.

"Each additional hour of gaming per week was linked to a decline in diet quality, even after accounting for stress, physical activity and other lifestyle factors," Professor Siervo said.

Sleep Disruption Linked to Gaming Hours

Sleep quality was generally poor across all groups, but students who played video games for moderate or high amounts of time reported worse sleep than low gamers. The data showed a clear relationship between longer gaming hours and increased sleep disruption.

"This study doesn't prove gaming causes these issues, but it shows a clear pattern that excessive gaming may be linked to an increase in health risk factors," Professor Siervo said.

Why Gaming Habits Matter Long Term

According to the researchers, moderate gaming does not appear to pose a problem for most students. The concern arises when long gaming sessions begin to replace essential daily routines such as eating well, getting enough sleep, and staying physically active.

"Our data suggests low and moderate gaming is generally fine, but excessive gaming may crowd out healthy habits such as eating a balanced diet, sleeping properly and staying active.

"Because university habits often follow people into adulthood, healthier routines such as taking breaks from gaming, avoiding playing games late at night and choosing healthier snacks may help improve their overall well-being."

The study, titled "Video Gaming Linked to Unhealthy Diet, Poor Sleep Quality and Lower Physical Activity Levels in Australian University Students," was published in Nutrition.