{"id":3477,"date":"2010-05-20T23:03:27","date_gmt":"2010-05-20T21:03:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.ultimatefatburner.com\/?p=3477"},"modified":"2015-02-15T09:26:22","modified_gmt":"2015-02-15T14:26:22","slug":"american-heart-association-joins-forces-nintendo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/american-heart-association-joins-forces-nintendo\/","title":{"rendered":"The American Heart Association Joins Forces With… Nintendo"},"content":{"rendered":"

Guess what, folks? Nintendo’s Wii Fit Console\u00a0has been endorsed by\u00a0the American Heart Association.\u00a0 Nintendo is now allowed to put the AHA’s “heart check” logo on this and related products.\u00a0 According to a press release by Nintendo<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Recent research indicates that the average person spends more than eight hours of each day sitting down*. The American Heart Association has been conducting its own studies to investigate the reasons why many Americans aren\u2019t more physically active. In a recent survey, more than half of respondents identified lack of time as one of the main obstacles preventing them from enjoying regular physical activity. Of those who almost never exercise, nearly 40 percent said that \u201cexercise is not fun.\u201d The American Heart Association and Nintendo aim to help eliminate these common barriers with a call to action that motivates people to \u201cGet Informed,\u201d \u201cGet Empowered\u201d and \u201cGet Active.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNintendo has been helping people get up off the couch and get playing since the Wii system launched in 2006,\u201d said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America\u2019s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. \u201cBy joining forces with the American Heart Association, we further our commitment to bringing fun and accessible active-play video games to a broader audience.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

But does the Wii Fit actually make exercise more fun?\u00a0 Perhaps if you’re a shut in… but when my kids\u00a0did a test drive\u00a0a while back, the verdict was “booooorrrrrrring.”<\/p>\n

[youtube:http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=_iYBmAVuBns]<\/p>\n

That’s a parody, but it actually describes\u00a0our experience\u00a0pretty well.<\/p>\n

Ok, but hey – it’s better than nothing… right?\u00a0 If I were heading up the AHA, perhaps I’d be ready to grasp at straws, too… eh?<\/p>\n

Maybe… but then again, maybe the AHA is also grasping at a little more than just straws.\u00a0 According to my “Heartwire” newsletter (free registration required):<\/p>\n

The AHA heart logo, which will appear on the Nintendo Wii system, as well as video games Wii Fit<\/em> and Wii Sports<\/em> Resort<\/em>, is part of a nationwide program to let consumers know that the organization considers the system and games healthy choices. Normally, however, the heart-check seal of approval is seen on food packaging, such as Cheerios, where it shows consumers that it meets criteria for saturated fat and cholesterol.<\/p>\n

As part of the partnership, Nintendo is donating $1.5 million to the AHA.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Funny how Nintendo doesn’t mention this “donation.”<\/p>\n

After looking around, I’m gonna have to cast my lot with the critics on this one…<\/p>\n

“There are critics, however, with some questioning whether the system deserves the AHA thumbs-up and specifically questioning just how much exercise kids are going to get from these games. Dr Janet Fulton<\/strong> (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA) told ABC news the evidence is inconclusive regarding the health benefits, particularly since “real sports” burn more calories than the video-game versions. Others questioned the endorsement of a commercial product, but Yancy told ABC news the AHA logo is not for sale and that his greater concern is not engaging the millions of inactive people in the US.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Props to Dr. Fulton.\u00a0 I looked\u00a0around\u00a0Nintendo’s\u00a0Wii Fit\u00a0site<\/a>, and found exactly nada\u00a0to show\u00a0that using the Wii Fit\u00a0makes a significant\u00a0contribution to one’s cardiovascular fitness or overall health. I’m not claiming (yet) that it can’t or doesn’t, but shouldn’t some sort of controlled study of the benefits (if any) be a prerequisite for an AHA endorsement?\u00a0 If the sole criterion is a desire to engage \u00a0“the millions of inactive people in the US,” then the door’s wide open.\u00a0 Why not\u00a0stamp the AHA’s logo on\u00a0the Shake Weight, Jump Snap<\/a>\u00a0or “Easy Tone” walking shoes<\/a>\u00a0too?<\/p>\n

I’m all for getting people moving, and if the Wii Fit floats their boat, then I’m fine with that… it IS better than nothing, after all. But IMHO, the AHA is a serious, well-regarded organization… thus, the bar should be set a little higher than it (apparently) is. Nintendo should have had to cough up some data, along with the money, to get the\u00a0organization’s approval.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Guess what, folks? Nintendo’s Wii Fit Console\u00a0has been endorsed by\u00a0the American Heart Association.\u00a0 Nintendo is now allowed to put the AHA’s “heart check” logo on this and related […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10,14,15,28],"tags":[610,1854,808,1863],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3477"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3477"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3477\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9081,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3477\/revisions\/9081"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/ufb-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}