E-athletes’ lifestyle behaviors, physical activity habits, and overall health and wellbeing: a systematic review

Abstract

Background: E-sports is becoming increasingly popular; however, participation is not without risks. Certain lifestyle factors associated with gaming may have negative effects on the wellbeing of the players. Objective: This systematic review of current studies of e-athletes’ health and wellbeing, primarily focused on athletes level of physical activity. This review also aimed to gain insight on potential health promotion and management strategies for e-gamers and e-athletes. Method: Four online databases (Medline, SCOPUS, Web of Science, and EBSCO) were searched for full-text English articles published between 2010 and April 2020. A total of six articles met the inclusion criteria and were included for review. Results: From the six studies, five themes were identified: (1) demographics of e-sports; (2) e-athletes’ level of physical activity, compared to World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines; (3) reasons to engage in physical activity; (4) physical training as a part of e-sport training; and (5) degree of sedentary time. Other findings included e-sports injuries reported by participants, broader aspects of health behaviors, along with proposals for multiple disciplinary team approaches to e-athlete management. Conclusion: Despite the level of sedentary behavior and e-sports related injuries from the reviewed studies, the majority of e-athletes in the studies included met WHO physical activity guidelines with health promotion as primary motivation. Other health behaviors (sleep and diet) are particularly relevant to e-athletes. More research is needed to better understand this population's health-related behavior and habits to better establish their wellbeing and health risks.