Video games players have long since carried the stereotypical image of being fat nerds living in dark rooms and suffering from a serious case of poor hygiene and a lack of the sun. That image however isn’t valid anymore, as researchers in the US found out when they asked 7,000 gamers to take part in a series of tests to assess their mental and physical health.

In the course of the tests, they discovered that adult video gamers actually had a lower BMI (body mass index) than the average in the population. They also found that gamers would participate in exercise once or twice per week, which was far more than most of the population.

One such gamer, Aaron Scott, claims that the findings show that gamers aren’t unhealthy, and says that the Nintendo Wii has helped his fellow gamers become far more health aware.

I’ve battled that stereotype for the past five years.

He says that the Wii has enabled video game fans to stretch their limbs as well as improving their mind, and of course their gaming ability. Scott says he’s as keen on his exercise as he is on his game playing, doing the two in equal measures each week.

The idea a gamer has to be a 14-year-old kid who plays for 10 hours a day while eating pizza seems to be vanishing.