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If you live fast you will probably die young, and one day the universe will come to an end. Both of these facts are examples of science telling you things that you didn't want to hear. But science wants to make it up to you! This week it will attempt to cheer you up with some good news: you know all that time you spend playing your favourite game? Congratulations! You are actually making a positive life choice.

Life can be stressful. Chronic stress wears down the body and mind. It can lead to physical problems, such as high blood pressure and a suppressed immune system, as well as mental health problems. Not ideal! The mechanism behind this is prolonged exposure to stress hormones that a healthy individual should experience only over short periods of time.

Games are engaging – they allow you to focus on reaching goals and promote a sense of optimism. In doing so, they encourage the brain to enter a mental state that increases general wellbeing and reduces anxiety. Depressed people have also been seen to have their symptoms reduced, at least temporarily, from game playing.

Gaming is a fun social activity. It has been shown that when people play a game in which they are made to cooperate with other players they then become more willing to help other people outside the game. And playing games with another person usually strengthens your relationship with that person, even if you suck and they beat you terribly.

As if improving your mental health and relationships weren’t enough, gaming may also help smooth the aging process. In a study published in the journal Nature, the cognitive workout of pretending to drive a car around in a computer game sharpened the brains of older adults. Improvements were seen in multitasking, attention span and working memory. If you care you will buy your grandparents an Xbox this Christmas.

Finally, it could be that the best way to promote social change and solve real life problems is through the use of games. There is a mobile game called “Play to Cure: Genes in Space” available free from Cancer Research UK. In this game you pilot a spaceship on a mission to collect as much of a substance called “Element Alpha” as you can. But that’s not all you’re doing! While mapping out your route to get the most Element Alpha, you are actually helping cancer researchers find patterns in genetic data from thousands of tumours. Your gaming could help cure cancer. In a similar vein, the online game Foldit involves trying to figure out the shape of proteins. The game is self-contained, i.e. you don’t need to know the science before you start playing. Foldit players managed to solve the structure of an enzyme that had eluded professional scientists for over a decade.

Whether it is solitaire or rugby you’re playing, keep going. If you don’t play any games, you now know that incorporating some play time into your schedule could keep you from heading over that metaphorical edge. And at the same time, you could be saving the world. That’s science, bitches!