Next time you yell at that slacker gamer to stop rotting his/her brain, remember—you need to respect your elders.

That’s right; thanks to the Wii and DS, the gaming market is no longer limited to pimply-faced young men. The definition of a gamer can be your mom, your girlfriend and even your grandpa.

Packaged Facts, a market research company, just took a gander at the gaming market. Their report states that gamers are just as likely to be female than male now. Also, apparently 52 percent of adults in the U.S. (or 114 million people) have that gaming monkey on their backs.

Another neat tidbit: 25 million of those adults are older than 55. “For example, among the senior population, video games are being used to boost brain power and encourage physical activity,” says Tatjana Meerman, publisher of Packaged Facts. “And video games are utilized in hospitals to help patients with rehabilitation and physical therapy.”

The rest of the company’s findings are in the report, which is titled “The Adult Videogamer Market in the U.S.: Tapping into the New Diversity of Video-Game Players.”

Rachel Cericola - Contributing Writer

Over the past 15 years, Rachel Cericola has covered entertainment, web and technology trends. Check her out at www.rachelcericola.com.