Background-To examine the influence active-play video gaming (also referred to as exergaming, exertainment, and active gaming) might have on improving health-related skills, enhancing self-esteem and self-efficacy, promoting social support, and ultimately motivating positive changes in health behaviors, the American Heart Association convened The Power of Play: Innovations in Getting Active Summit. The summit, as well as a follow-up science panel, was hosted by the American Heart Association and Nintendo of America. Methods and Results-The science panel discussed the current state of research on active-play video gaming and its potential to serve as a gateway experience that might motivate players to increase the amount and intensity of physical activity in their daily lives. The panel identified the need for continued research on the gateway concept and on other behavioral health outcomes that could result from active-play video games and considered how these games could potentially affect disparate populations. Conclusions-The summit represented an exciting first step in convening healthcare providers, behavioral researchers, and professionals from the active-play video game industry to discuss the potential health benefits of active-play video games. Research is needed to improve understanding of processes of behavior change with active games. Future games and technologies may be designed with the goal to optimize physical activity participation, increase energy expenditure, and effectively address the abilities and interests of diverse and targeted populations. The summit helped the participants gain an understanding of what is known, identified gaps in current research, and supported a dialogue for continued collaboration. (Circulation. 2011;123:2507-2516.)

Although exergames have been demonstrated to induce moderate levels of physical activity (PA) if played as designed, there is conflicting evidence on use of exergaming leading to increased habitual PA. Exergames have increased PA in some home and school studies, but not others. Exergames have been used in community centers to good effect, but this has not generally been validated with research. PA from exergames may be enhanced by innovative use of sensors, "fun"-enhancing procedures, tailored messaging, message framing, story or narrative, goal setting, feedback, and values-based messaging. Research is needed on PA-enhancing procedures used within exergames for youth to provide a firmer foundation for the design and use of exergames in the future.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine whether a correlation existed among the scores of the ''Jackie Chan Studio Fitness Ô Action Run'' active videogame (XaviX Ò , SSD Company, Ltd., Kusatsu, Japan), the 1-mile run/walk, and Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER) aerobic fitness tests of the FITNESSGRAM Ò (The Cooper Institute, Dallas, TX) in order to provide a potential alternative testing method for days that are not environmentally desirable for outdoor testing. Subjects and Methods: Participants were a convenience sample from physical education classes of students between the ages of 10 and 15 years. Participants (n = 108) were randomly assigned to one of three groups with the only difference being the order of testing. The tests included the ''Jackie Chan Action Run'' active videogame, the 1-mile run/walk, and the PACER. Testing occurred on three different days during the physical education class. Rating of perceived exertion (RPE) was reported. Results: Significant correlations (r = -0.598 to 0.312) were found among the three aerobic fitness tests administered (P < 0.05). The RPE for the ''Jackie Chan Action Run'' was lower than the RPE for the 1-mile run/walk and the PACER (3.81 -1.89, 5.93 -1.77, and 5.71 -2.14, respectively). Conclusions:The results suggest that the ''Jackie Chan Action Run'' test could be an alternative to the 1-mile run/walk and PACER, allowing physical education teachers to perform aerobic fitness testing in an indoor setting that requires less space. Also, children may be more willing to participate in the ''Jackie Chan Action Run'' based on the lower RPE.

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A major public health concern is the debilitating effect of chronic stress, leading to lower performance and productivity at work and school, thus affecting quality of life. Addressing this crisis, a stress reduction pilot program was designed based on complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) strategies as an effective, quick, and relatively inexpensive health promotion strategy for chronic stress. The intervention, a four-session yoga and meditation regimen, was created to give participants the acquired skills and comprehension for performing seven breathing exercises, two meditation techniques, and 14 simple yoga postures to combat stress in their daily lives. The design was a quasi-experimental, with a pretest and posttest, and non-equivalent control group. Data were analyzed using five repeated measure ANOVAs. The intervention group experienced greater decreases in stress-related variables from pretest to posttest compared to the control group. Preliminary findings indicate promise for introducing yoga and meditation among a variety of schools, workplace settings, and preventive care clinics. as an effective, simple, and relatively inexpensive health promotion strategy to negate the debilitating effects of chronic stress, and to enhance well being and performance.