Playing Tetris can block food, drug cravings?

London: Playing Tetris on a smartphone for as little as three minutes can weaken cravings for drugs, food and activities such as sex and sleeping by

as much as one- fifth, a new research has found. In the first test of its kind to study people in natural settings outside of a

laboratory, participants were monitored for levels of craving

and prompted to play the block- shifting puzzle game at random intervals during the

day. Psychologists from Plymouth University, UK, and

Queensland University of Technology, Australia, found that playing Tetris interfered with desires not only for food,

but also for substances categorised as drugs, including cigarettes, alcohol and coffee, and other activities. The benefits of playing Tetris were maintained over the seven- day study period. In a report published in the international journal Addictive Behaviours, the researchers said playing the game could help people to manage their cravings, and they have recommended further research, including testing people dependent on drugs. “Playing

Tetris decreased craving strength for drugs, food, and activities from 70 per cent to 56 per cent,” said Professor

Jackie Andrade, from the School of Psychology and the Cognition Institute at Plymouth

University.