Virtual interaction and functional capacity of the elderly

This paper reports on a study of the effects of physical exercises performed in a traditional way and with interactive digital games on functional capacity of older adults. The study included the intake of Spirulina platensis as an enhancement of physical exercise. The study was a double blind randomized trial, conducted in 2 months. The sample consisted of 20 female and 15 male older adults, divided into three groups: G1 (n = 12, 71.2 ± 7.5 years) performed traditional physical activities, such as weight lifting and dance; G2 (n = 13, 69 ± 5.8 years) did interactive activities using the Xbox Kinect (with the `Body and Brain Connection´ game) and made use of Spirulina platensis; and G3 (n = 10, 70.7 ± 4.8 years) undertook the same interactive activities and used a placebo. The results show that both traditional and interactive physical activities improve three parameters of functional capacity, namely aerobic endurance, agility, and balance (p ≤ 0.05). However, we found dissimilar effects in two parameters of functional capacity: there were no gains in flexibility in the three groups and there were only gains in terms of speed in G1 and G2. The intake of Spirulina platensis in G2 might be boosting the aerobic speed. The overall findings suggest that traditional activities and interactive physical activities are equivalent in improving functional capacity.